Yes, Walmart does sell Wagyu beef in the form of Wagyu beef patties, Wagyu Strip Steak, and also Wagyu Beef Ribeye Steak. However, this will be subject to availability and Wagyu may not be offered in every store across the country.
You may be limited to what sorts of Wagyu cuts or products you can buy at Walmart, or they may not even sell them at your local store.
If you’re looking for some premium cuts, then one of the best places to find some amazing Wagyu is at CrowdCow, we’d recommend the Filet Mignon Wagyu which is so unbelievably juicy and is such a treat to enjoy on the weekend.
The best part is that they ship it to your doorstep in a frozen box, quality guaranteed! So why bother with going to the store yourself?
Where does Walmart get their Wagyu beef?
Most of Walmart’s Wagyu beef products are labeled as ‘American Wagyu’ so presumably, their meat is coming from American cattle farms and not Japan.
The prices of the Walmart Wagyu products are notably not as high as traditional Japanese Wagyu, which is an immediate clue that the Wagyu is not genuine Wagyu from Japan.
Walmart’s Wagyu beef will be from Wagyu beef cattle but it will have been raised and cut on US farms.
The more inexpensive Wagyu products will not be premium cuts hence why the price is so much more affordable than Japanese Wagyu.
Is Walmart Wagyu real?
No, Walmart Wagyu is not real Japanese Wagyu. They breed Wagyu cattle with American cattle as Wagyu only needs around 46% Wagyu genetics to be sold as Wagyu in a retail store.
So even though you’re getting a good deal on your American Wagyu, you’ll need to bear in mind that it is only really half Wagyu and half Angus or whatever other cattle they use to breed with.
So they may be using real Wagyu cattle to breed with American cattle, the chances of the Walmart Wagyu being 100% real is very slim.
If you want to be guaranteed incredibly quality American Wagyu beef, then one of the best places to go is Snake River Farms, they have a wide selection of American Wagyu cuts and they’re available in a variety of portion sizes to suit whatever occasion you’re cooking for.
These cuts may be slightly more expensive than Walmart, however, the quality is exceptional and there really is no comparison.
How much is Wagyu beef in Walmart?
Wagyu beef in Walmart will vary in price depending on what kind of cut and portion size you’re buying. Meat is normally priced by weight, so the heavier the cut and the more premium the cut, the more expensive it will be.
Walmart’s American Wagyu Beef Patties are priced just under $5 for 16oz of meat, which contains 3 individual patties.
The average price of a Walmart’s Marketside Butcher Wagyu Beef NY Strip Steak is around $18, but this will increase or decrease depending on the weight of the portion. One Walmart Wagyu Ribeye Steak has an average price of just under $20.
You may be lucky to get some really good deals on the Wagyu beef sold in Walmart and they are pretty good quality, however, we’d recommend going to a butcher’s or a specialized Wagyu retailer to get premium cuts as you’ll get great value for the quality you’re getting.
Which supermarkets sell Wagyu?
Most supermarkets in the US sell some form of Wagyu beef product and this is the quickest and easiest way to get hold of the well-loved meat.
You may be able to find Wagyu products in the general meat aisle, frozen section, or at the designated butcher’s counter in your local supermarket.
The most popular supermarkets like Whole Foods, Meijer, and Trader Joe’s all have a variety of Wagyu products in their stores.
However, online meat retailers have become increasingly popular nowadays, especially with Wagyu becoming so popular, Crowd Cow and Snake River Farms are only two of many online meat retailers and they supply some top-of-the-line premium cuts of Wagyu.
People are willing to pay more money on premium cuts of Wagyu online because they already expect higher prices, whereas in supermarkets people expect to find cheaper meats and are surprised to see the extremely high prices on Wagyu products.
Does Costco sell Wagyu?
Yes, Costco does sell Wagyu cuts and products but they are a lot more expensive than what you’ll find in your regular supermarket. They sell both American Wagyu and traditional Japanese Wagyu, so you’ll be able to find something within your price range.
Costco has the Kuroge Wagyu beef, which is also better known as the Japanese black beef and has the highest ranking grade for Wagyu available – so you’ll know it’s amazing.
A 6lb Japanese Wagyu Tenderloin Roast in Costco will set you back a whopping $999.99, but they do also offer some more ‘affordable’ Japanese Wagyu beef such as the Chuck Roll Bulgogi Style Slices which are sold at around $220 a pack.
Needless to say, if you want amazing quality and authentic Wagyu, then you’ll have to pay the price for it. In a restaurant, you would probably pay double the price of what they sell it for in a store like Costco.
How do you tell the difference between real Wagyu and fake Wagyu?
One of the most obvious indicators is that it is real, is that it’ll have ‘Japanese Wagyu’ on the label of the product and it’ll also have a Wagyu ranking which goes from A-C (A being the best) and 1-5 (5 being the best) so the best Japanese Wagyu out there is graded A-5. Read this Wikipedia article if you want to dive deeper.
Real Japanese Wagyu has an insane marbling effect on the meat which is difficult to replicate in fake Wagyu.
Genuine Japanese Wagyu also tastes incredible and the fat should melt right in your mouth as you eat it. If you’re looking for Wagyu in a store anything advertised as ‘American Wagyu’ is not genuine Japanese Wagyu.
The prices for Japanese Wagyu will be extremely high as well compared to fake or American Wagyu.
Did you enjoy this article? Read more about Wagyu Beef here!
