Australian Wagyu Grading

Australian Wagyu cattle have a direct connection to Japanese Wagyu cattle. In fact, purebred Australian Wagyu have at least 93.75% pure Japanese Wagyu cattle genetics. In the same way that Japanese Wagyu is graded, Australian Wagyu is also rated on a strict grading system.

There are currently two grading systems used to grade Australian Wagyu beef:

  • Meat Standards Australia (MSA)
  • AUS-MEAT

Each of these Australian Wagyu grading systems has unique requirements and considerations that are taken into consideration when determining the final grade.

What Is the MSA Grading System?

Meat Standards Australia (MSA) is the latest system for grading Australian Wagyu beef. MSA is regulated by Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA).

MSA grades Wagyu based on the number of different categories pertaining to quality, including:

  • Meat color
  • Marbling
  • Fat depth
  • Carcass weight
  • Maturity
  • pH

Applying very rigorous standards, MSA grades on a scale of 100 (no intramuscular fat) to 1190 (extreme amounts of intramuscular fat). This scale works in increments of 10, which allows for more fine detail in assigning individual grades. A

What Is the AUS-MEAT Grading System?

Between the two grading systems for Australian Wagyu beef, the more commonly used and widely known option is AUS-MEAT. This system has been in place longer, so it's much more familiar to those who raise, purchase and consume Australian Wagyu.

Australian Wagyu grades from AUS-MEAT are assigned in a way that is very similar to the BMS (Beef Marbling Standard), which is used in the Japanese Wagyu grading system. This system is graded from 0 (no intramuscular fat) to 9 (extreme amounts of intramuscular fat) in increments of 1.

According to the AUS-MEAT grading system, average quality Australian Wagyu beef is rated 3 to 7, and lower quality beef is rated 0 to 2. The highest quality Australian Wagyu beef will have ratings of 8 or 9 on the AUS-MEAT scale. These AUS-MEAT ratings are essentially the equivalent of A5 ratings awarded to Japanese Wagyu beef by the Japanese Meat Grading Association.

At the Wagyu Shop, we're committed to providing only the finest Wagyu beef. We only provide Australian Wagyu an AUS-MEAT score 8 or 9, which falls between 1000 to 1100+ on the MSA grading system.