With a mascot on standby ¡ª adorned with ear tags and a chef¡¯s hat ¡ª booths manned for promotions and a host of interactive activities prepared, the 12th National Japanese Beef Ability Expo is ready to make a splash when it opens to the public on Oct. 6.
Dubbed the ¡°Wagyu Olympics¡± and hosted every five years, the five-day event is expected to welcome more than 400,000 visitors, all seeking to find out firsthand which cattle and variety of beef will be crowned best in Japan. This year¡¯s host, Kagoshima Prefecture, will see around 440 head of cattle from 41 prefectures compete in nine categories based on characteristics such as the animals¡¯ age and gender.
Farmers and breeders have long been gearing up for this competition, the premium event on Japan¡¯s beef industry calendar. Preparations started only shortly after the close of the previous expo, which was held in Miyagi Prefecture in 2017.
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