He's Raised Cattle for 71 Years. We Visited the Legendary 88-Year-Old Titan of Matsusaka Beef.

• Table of Contents
• TheBirthplace of Matsusaka Beef, Fukano
• TheLegend Raising Matsusaka Beef for 71 Years
• Memoriesof Eating Beef for the First Time
• SpecialGrade Matsusaka Cattle: The Rarity That Only Makes up 4% of Matsusaka Beef
• TheFlavor of the Beef is in the Quality of the Fat
• Walkingthe Path of Life with His Cows

TheBirthplace of Matsusaka Beef, Fukano

TheLegend Raising Matsusaka Beef for 71 Years

When I peek into the cow shed, Tochigimeets me with a smile. Known locally as “The Titan of Matsusaka Beef,” he’s alegend among those who fatten cattle.

I spoke with Tochigi, the legend who dedicated an incredible 71 years to the craft of special grade Matsusaka beef, about his life raising cows.

Memoriesof Eating Beef for the First Time

Our story takesus back to 1949, after World War II.        

SpecialGrade Matsusaka Cattle: The Rarity That Only Makes up 4% of Matsusaka Beef

From long ago, small but powerful female cattleborn in Tajima (Hyogo Prefecture) and raised in Kishu (Wakayama Prefecture)were brought to Matsusaka as work animals. With those cows, farmers developedthe fattening practices that are used to create the superior-quality Matsusakabeef.

When Tochigi began raising cattle, he wouldhave to walk his cows five and a half hours to bring them to market, and couldonly take one or two at a time. The streets were gravel, so to prevent the cowsfrom damaging their hooves, he made them wear handmade straw sandals. If hewasn’t able to sell his cattle, he and his cows would walk the five and a halfhours home. When he was able to make a sale, he could take the train home.

TheFlavor of the Beef is in the Quality of the Fat

Considered a walking encyclopedia even among other cattle farmers, Tochigi has won the grand prize three times at the competitive exhibition in the Matsusaka Beef Festival.

▲ Tochigieasily wrote out the names of the farmers who won grand prizes over the last 70years, and the price their award-winning cows fetched at auction. What anincredible memory!

At the time, cows lived in the house as amember of the family. They were given cooked food, such as straw or grainboiled on a traditional stove. Since cows are timid and easily frightened, it’simportant to speak kindly to them, and pet them gently.

In 1963, Tochigi began keeping a diary, inwhich he also recorded details about the cows.

▲An art piece that Tochigi composed aboutcows.

Walkingthe Path of Life with His Cows

They’ve been together since she was a calf,so she comes whenever Tochigi calls her.

As we walked the vast rice terraces,Tochigi looked warmly at Sayuri, and she stuck close to him. You could feel thetrust between them.

He spoke while affectionately patting thecow's back, gave the young men a smile as they left, and said, “Come say hiagain.”

Tochigi gets up every day at 5am, gives anoffering of tea and rice to the gods and Buddha, feeds his cows, and sees theneighborhood kids off to school. He records the details of daily life inskillful penmanship that he learned at the age of 65. With reverence for life,Tochigi approaches both his cows and his work earnestly, and livesintentionally, one day at a time. This is how he built his life as a cattlefarmer.

Tochigi: I’monly here today thanks to my cows.

[Interview date] June 23, 2020

[Tie-up] Web magazine OTONAMIE https://otonamie.jp/

Matsusaka Beef Council Official Website

Matsusaka City Tourism Information Site

Matsusaka City Tourism Information Official Instagram