The short answer: Olive Wagyu (Olive Beef, オリーブ牛) is Japanese Black cattle raised in Kagawa prefecture and finished on feed made from dried olive pomace, the pulp left after pressing olive oil. It must grade yield A or B with quality 3, 4 or 5. Farmer Masaki Ishii launched it on Shodoshima island in 2010, and about 3,000 head now ship each year.
What is Olive Wagyu?
Olive Wagyu, also called Olive Beef or Olive-fed Wagyu (オリーブ牛), is Japanese Black beef from Kagawa prefecture, on the island of Shikoku. What sets it apart is the finish: the cattle eat feed made from dried olive pomace, the pulp left after pressing olive oil [2].
| Rule | Olive Wagyu |
|---|---|
| Breed | Japanese Black (Kuroge Washu), Sanuki Wagyu |
| Where | Raised in Kagawa prefecture [2] |
| Feed | Olive feed for at least two months before shipment [4][5] |
| Grade | Yield A or B; quality 4–5 (gold label) or 3 (silver label) [2] |
| Certified by | The Olive-fed Wagyu Promotion Association [1] |
So not every Olive Wagyu is A5. Grade 3 qualifies too [2].
Where did Olive Wagyu come from?
Shodoshima, an island in Kagawa known for its olive groves. A local Wagyu farmer, Masaki Ishii, started feeding his cattle the pomace left over from olive oil pressing. Three farms launched it as Shodoshima Olive Beef in May 2010, and it became a prefecture-wide brand of 30 farms in 2011 [1]. The feed process was patented in 2018 [1], and Olive Wagyu won a fat-quality award at Japan's national Wagyu show in 2017 [1].
Is Olive Wagyu really that rare?
Not as rare as US marketing suggests. Its promotion association reports 3,123 head shipped in 2025, up from 550 in 2011 [1]. That's on the same scale as Kobe beef, which certifies about 5,500 head a year [6]. What is small is the export volume, and the original Shodoshima sub-brand.
The fat claims deserve the same care. The association makes no numeric oleic acid claim [2]. About half the fat in any Japanese Black beef is oleic acid already [7], so "high in oleic acid" describes the breed, olive feed or not.
How traceable is Olive Wagyu?
Better than most brands, for exported beef. The association publishes every animal exported, and each entry names the producing farm [3]. The US is currently the only listed export destination [3].
What the brand doesn't describe is the rest of the cow's life. Beyond the olive finish, the rules don't set feed origin, housing or how long an animal is raised.
How does Olive Wagyu compare with Peak Wagyu?
Both are Japanese Black, raised in Japan and graded by the Japan Meat Grading Association. Olive Wagyu is defined by a feed; we're defined by a farm.
| Olive Wagyu | Peak Wagyu | |
|---|---|---|
| Where | Any qualifying farm in Kagawa [2] | Takeda Farm, Asahikawa, Hokkaido |
| Grade | Quality 3 or higher [2] | A4, BMS 6 |
| Feed | Olive pomace for at least the final two months [4] | About half Hokkaido-grown hay, plus oats and rice bran from Asahikawa mochi barley, the whole way through |
| The farm | Named in the export registry [3] | Named, and we've visited |
| The animal | 10-digit ID in the export registry [3] | Takemitsu-chan, ID 1493019197, grading certificate published |
| Welfare | Not set by the brand | Spacious barn, every cow named, no growth hormones, sent off before maximum weight |
Ellie Takeda's cows eat a local diet from the start: hay grown in Hokkaido, which has the room for both hayfields and spacious barns, and they drink Daisetsuzan snowmelt. She ships them before they reach maximum weight. Takemitsu-chan graded A4, BMS 6: marbled above the ceiling of USDA Prime, with enough beef flavor to carry a whole steak. How are Wagyu cows raised? tells her story.
Frequently asked questions
Is Olive Wagyu the rarest steak in the world?
No. That line comes from US marketing, not from the brand. About 3,100 Olive Wagyu shipped in 2025, according to its promotion association, which is a production on the scale of Kobe beef's roughly 5,500 certified head a year. Only a small share is exported.
What is Olive Wagyu fed?
Japanese Black cattle in Kagawa are finished on feed made from dried olive pomace, the pulp left after pressing olive oil, for at least two months before shipment. The brand's rules cover the olive feed, not the rest of the diet.
Is all Olive Wagyu A5?
No. Olive Wagyu must grade yield A or B with quality 3, 4 or 5. Grades 4 and 5 carry a gold label and grade 3 a silver one.
Is Olive Wagyu healthier?
The brand makes no numeric health or oleic acid claim. It won a fat-quality award at Japan's national Wagyu show in 2017. All Japanese Black fat is high in oleic acid, about half of the total.
Sources
- Olive-fed Wagyu Promotion Association (讃岐牛・オリーブ牛振興会), official site and shipment history
- Olive-fed Wagyu Promotion Association, "Proof" (definition and grades)
- Olive-fed Wagyu Promotion Association, exported Olive Wagyu registry
- Olive-fed Wagyu Promotion Association, branding history (2019)
- Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, multilingual tourism text on Olive Beef
- Kobe Beef Marketing & Distribution Promotion Association, FAQ
- Gotoh, Nishimura, Kuchida and Mannen, "The Japanese Wagyu beef industry: current situation and future prospects — A review," Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences 31(7) (2018)
