Frequently Asked Questions

Is your Wagyu beef halal?

All our Wagyu beef is halal-certified and approved by the Department of Veterinary Services, Malaysia (DVS) and Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM). Please be aware of non-halal meat that has been smuggled illegally into the country. To avoid purchasing the wrong meat, please purchase your Wagyu beef directly from Wmart supermarket or our official online store.

I have a question about the Wagyu beef I bought online.

Please email us at sales@wmart.com.my or call us at +603 9222 3853 or +603 9222 3854 on the same day you receive your delivery. Wmart reserves the right to request for any photo evidence and/or to request you to bring the damaged/defective or wrong item to our store in its original packaging together with the original receipt, original packaging, tags and labels that came with it for our inspection.

What should I buy if I am cooking Wagyu beef for the first time?

If this is your very first time eating Wagyu beef, you can buy your favourite beef cut to taste the difference between Wagyu and commercial beef.

If you’re wondering about what dishes you should cook, Tetsuya Okuda, an Iga cattle farmer who supplies our Iga Wagyu beef, recommends eating your first Wagyu beef in the form of shabu-shabu. On the second day, try a Wagyu beef steak. Then yakiniku on Day Three.

When will my Wagyu beef expire?

Please adhere to the expiry date printed on the packaging and cook your Wagyu beef before the date if you're storing your meat in the fridge.

If you're not planning to cook your Wagyu beef right away, we recommend buying frozen Wagyu beef or storing your Wagyu beef in your freezer immediately after bringing it home.

Frozen Wagyu beef can retain its quality, flavours and freshness for up to 12 months. Ideally, frozen Wagyu steaks should be used within 4 months.   

Why is Wagyu beef better than commercial beef?

Eating beef is a personal journey and everyone has their own taste at the end of the day. However, the unbranded lean meat you normally find in supermarkets and at the butcher’s shop contains very little marbling. Commercial cattle may also be raised with artificial hormones and less-ideal farming conditions. Beef with the Prime label is good quality but only has a marbling score of 4 or 5.

The intense marbling in Wagyu beef results in an unrivalled taste and buttery texture. Wagyu cattle are raised with high ethical standards, which also factors into their premium price. Wagyu cattle live more than a year longer than commercial cattle, and they are not injected with growth hormones and antibiotics. Their diet consists of carefully selected grains determined by feeding specialists. All this results in vastly superior meat.

Are there Wagyu cows in Malaysia? Can Wagyu beef be produced in Malaysia? Aren’t all cows the same?

No. Wagyu cows have unique genetics and are raised in controlled environments with special feed. Malaysia is not allowed to import Japanese Wagyu cattle in any form and breed them. While farm conditions and feed can technically be reproduced elsewhere, Wagyu’s genotype, which enables their marbling, cannot be copied. All the Wagyu cows that produce the meat we import are raised in Japan or Australia.

What do grades like A5, MS 4/5 and BMS 7/8 mean?

The quality of Wagyu beef is rated based on its marbling score. In Australia, MS means ‘Marbling Score’. BMS or ‘Beef Marbling Score’ is the term used in Japan. The higher the rating, the more marbling is found in the meat and the more tender, buttery and flavourful it is. Both ratings are interchangeable (an MS 7 in Australia is the same as a BMS 7 in Japan), however Australian Wagyu beef peaks at a marbling score of 9 while Japanese Wagyu beef goes all the way up to an impressive BMS 12.

An A5 grade is the highest rating a portion of Wagyu beef can achieve. In addition to scoring an A (72% or more) for ratio of meat-to-carcass weight, the Wagyu beef must also be rated 5/5 in other categories:

• Beef Marbling Score (BMS), which must be between 8 and 12.
• Beef Colour Standard (BCS)
• Beef Fat Standard (BFS)
• Firmness & Texture

For the freshest meat, should I buy them online or at Wmart supermarket?

Both options will provide you with fresh Wagyu beef. Customers come to our supermarket to browse our available Wagyu products in person and talk to our staff or butchers. For purchases via our website, we will deliver your order within 2-3 business days. Our Wagyu beef is securely packed to ensure its freshness.  

What type of Wagyu do you sell? Are they all the same or completely different?

We have curated the best brands for our customers, taking into consideration local tastes, preferences and budget. The Wagyu beef you see on this website is all Iga Beef. If you go to our supermarket or Wmart online store, we sell several Wagyu brands:

• IGA: Our exclusive brand from Japan that sells top-tier A5-grade Wagyu beef.
• MIE: A Japanese brand also from the Mie Prefecture (where Iga is) that offers A4- to A5-grade Wagyu beef.
• NARA: A4- to A5-grade Wagyu beef from the Nara Prefecture (an hour west of Iga) in Japan.
• BLACKMORE: An award-winning Australian brand that pioneered the import and farming of Wagyu cattle in Australia. Their Wagyu beef consistently yields MS9+ grades. 
• MAYURA: Australian Wagyu brand that specializes in tomahawk cuts with meat that are HGP and antibiotic-free.
• PHOENIX F1: The Australian Phoenix-brand cattle are fed grain for a minimum of 365 days, 100% MSA graded, 100% hormone-free and Halal accredited.
• PHOENIX MASTER: This selection is only available from cattle sourced from the prestigious Ekka Paddock to Palate competition in Australia.
• TAJIMA: Australian Wagyu beef that comes from the Tajima bloodline best known for Kobe beef.

What’s the difference between Australian and Japanese Wagyu?

While 100% full-blood Wagyu cattle raised in Australia originated from Japan, the different climate,  environments, feed and rearing methods affect the taste and texture of the beef. The level of marbling found in Australian Wagyu beef tops out at a marbling score of 9. Only Wagyu cattle in Japan today can obtain a marbling score of up to 12. All A5-grade Wagyu beef, which has a marbling score between 8 and 12, can only be found in Japan.