Tag Archives: John Hundleby

Grass fed NZ beef a hit at music festival

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Grass-fed New Zealand beef struck a chord with the crowds at one of Japan’s largest dance and music festivals, Super Yosakoi, held in Tokyo on the weekend of 25 and 26 August.

Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ Ltd) was at the festival for the second year in a row, as part of its programme of activities to boost a taste for grass-fed New Zealand beef among Japanese consumers.

Organisers estimate that around 800,000 visitors took part in this year’s festival. Over the course of the two days, nearly 700 kilograms of grass-fed beef was served off the B+LNZ stand, which equated to more than 4,000 servings. To enable people to appreciate its true flavour, the beef was cooked simply in oil and seasoned only with salt and pepper.

A wide range of foodstuffs was on offer, but there was little doubt New Zealand beef was the most popular with festival-goers. While sampling on the Saturday was steady throughout the day, on the Sunday, a queue formed as soon as the first plate of piping hot beef was served at 10am and did not ease until the grills were turned off at 5.30pm.

The overwhelming on-the-spot response from people eating the beef was how juicy, tender and tasty it was, says B+LNZ market manager for Japan John Hundleby, adding that many were trying grass-fed beef for the first time and were not certain what to expect.

“However, once they put the beef in their mouths and tasted it, their delighted expressions conveyed very clearly their reaction.”

Others remembered sampling the beef at the festival in 2011 and actively sought out the B+LNZ stand again this year so they could enjoy the beef’s taste one more time.

Commenting on Beef + Lamb New Zealand’s participation in the festival, Hundleby said: “As was the case in 2011, Super Yosakoi provided us with an opportunity to put delicious, healthy and nutritious New Zealand grass-fed beef directly in front of consumers not only from Tokyo but from surrounding cities and prefectures. The highly positive response was gratifying, as was their interest in finding out more about the beef. In particular, the healthiness, nutritional merits and safety of the grass-fed beef seemed to strike a chord.”

Lining up for grass-fed beef in Japan and Korea

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Chefs in Japan and Korea have been learning more about New Zealand grass-fed beef from award-winning Christchurch chef Darren Wright.

Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ)’s market manager for Japan/Korea, John Hundleby says Wright, who has been in the two countries promoting New Zealand beef to a lineup of influential chefs and media, cooked a range of beef dishes at a number of events. His offerings included beef ravioli made from short-ribs, beef tortellini and tenderloin steaks.

“Since Korean and Japanese people are far more familiar with the cooking qualities of grain-fed beef which is more common in the two markets, a highlight at these events is always the demonstration of how to cook a good grass-fed beef steak.”

Japan and Korea are important markets for New Zealand beef farmers. Japan is New Zealand’s number two beef export market by value, worth NZ$230.7million (season ending 30 September 2011) and Korea is New Zealand’s number three export beef market by value, worth $203.1 million (season ending 30 September 2011).

“Beef + Lamb New Zealand works on behalf of farmers in these markets to introduce consumers to New Zealand grass-fed beef and then to develop a preference for it,” Hundleby says.

“Working with chefs and encouraging them to use our product is an important part of getting more Japanese and Korean people to eat New Zealand beef. Influential media also have a valuable role to play in highlighting the health benefits of grass-fed beef that make it lower in fat and higher in Omega-3s than grain-fed beef.”