Successful Hanwoo Aged Meat Demonstration Held

The Daegu-Gyeongbuk provincial chapter of the Korean Hanwoo Association (Chapter President: Jang Seong-dae), seeking to differentiate the region's Hanwoo industry, held a grand Hanwoo aged meat demonstration on the 4th at the annex of 'Ohneul Jabeun So' in Buk-gu, Daegu.

This was the first event organized by the 'Sustainable Gyeongbuk Hanwoo Special Committee,' which was formed on October 29 through a business agreement between Gyeongbuk Province and local

Hanwoo-related organizations. The demonstration was designed to explore ways to enhance the prestige of Gyeongbuk Hanwoo using food tech and to find methods to increase the value of Hanwoo through these technologies.

The event was hosted by the Daegu-Gyeongbuk provincial chapter of the Korean Hanwoo Association and organized by the Sustainable Gyeongbuk Hanwoo Special Committee.

Approximately 50 people attended, including Bok Jeong-seok, Head of Livestock Policy for Gyeongbuk Province; Kim Young-hwan, Director of the Gyeongbuk Provincial Livestock Research Institute; Yang Shin-cheol, Head of the Daegu-Gyeongbuk branch of the Korea Animal Improvement Association; Kim Hong-gil, former president of the national Korean Hanwoo Association (and head of the Uiseong Livestock Cooperative); Hwang Hong-mi, Deputy Manager of the Gyeongbuk Nonghyup Livestock Business Group; and other Hanwoo Association executives.

In his opening address, Chapter President Jang said, "This is a significant step toward stabilizing the income of Hanwoo farmers and pioneering new consumer markets to compete against the influx of imported beef and low-grade Hanwoo in the market." He added, "I hope this event, combined with efforts to produce high-quality meat at the farm level, will inspire Hanwoo brand operators and meat processors to elevate the value of Gyeongbuk Hanwoo through aging, making it the undisputed number one region for Hanwoo, not just in herd size but also in taste, surpassing other regions."

Following this, Kim Jae-min, editor-in-chief of 'Farm and Table,' gave a presentation on 'Methods to Enhance the Prestige of Gyeongbuk Hanwoo Using Food Tech.' He diagnosed the current situation and outlined a path for development, noting that Gyeongbuk is the largest Hanwoo hub in the nation, ranking #1 in both the number of farms and cattle. He also highlighted that it led the nation's high-quality beef market by achieving the highest rate of grade 1 or higher Hanwoo for two consecutive years (79.0% in 2022 and 77.8% in 2023).

Kim also presented on Gyeongbuk's status as the originator of Korea's first Hanwoo brand, its leadership in Hanwoo breeding, its history of producing several national Hanwoo Association presidents, and proposed strategies for brand enhancement through AGING (aging) technology.

Next, representatives from leading domestic meat-aging food-tech companies presented their technologies. CEO Byeon Jong-soo of 'Hyoon-on Aging' explained the smart ice-temperature aging system. Director Ko Yong-jae of 'Deep.Plant Inc.' described the deep-aging system, a special aging technology using water pressure and ultrasound that results in high tenderness and water retention.

Finally, CEO Jeong I-seong of 'Aging Maestro' explained an aging process that creates a sine-wave electric field in the air to produce a plasma discharge effect over a wide area (a 1.5-meter radius).

Following the presentations, attendees had the opportunity to taste and evaluate actual meat aged with the demonstrated methods. They expressed high expectations that these techniques could be effective in increasing the value of low-grade and less-preferred cuts of meat.

Source: Agriculture, Fisheries, and Livestock News (http://www.aflnews.co.kr)