It’s been almost two years since I wrote Food’s Biggest Scam: The Great Kobe Beef Lie, here in the pages of Forbes.com. That story assumed a life of its own, becoming one of the most widely read food stories of the year and garnering well over a million views. It continues to be heavily viewed to this day, and since it was the most read of the hundreds of online pieces I have written, I safely assume it is a topic that interests a lot of people. But the playing field has changed significantly since 2012, so I am revisiting the topic with the new truth about the world’s most famous and coveted beef.
The single most important element of my original piece was the fact (as in fact, not opinion) that no beef from Japan, not one ounce in any form, was allowed to be imported into this country by the USDA, starting back in 2009. To that end, every single restaurant in the nation that claimed Kobe beef on its menu, and there were hundreds, was lying (along with retailers). Many were charging very top dollar, three figures for steaks or $50 for a burger, and implicated in this scam were numerous celebrity chefs. Not surprisingly, I received comments from many folks who had paid such handsome amounts for what I termed “faux-be” beef, and they were understandably outraged because they had been ripped off, pure and simple. To be fair, I also received plenty of comments from folks who took a “so what?” attitude and I imagine they will feel pretty much the same way about the news that Kobe beef has returned to the US.
To read the rest of the story, please go to: Forbes
