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Beef Cattle Breeds

Hanwoo: The Native Korean Cattle Behind Korea's Premium Beef

A compact brown Korean breed, once a plow animal, now sits at the center of the country's beef industry.

What is Hanwoo cattle?

Hanwoo, also called Hanu or Korean Native cattle, is a small brown breed native to Korea. It is one of four indigenous Korean breeds, alongside the Chikso, the Heugu and the Jeju Black. The coat is brown and both sexes carry horns.

Hanwoo are a northern Bos taurus type with no zebu lineage, and they share a common origin with the Japanese Black and Yanbian cattle. Their precise origin is still debated. The Wikipedia article on Hanwoo summarizes the competing genetic studies, including a 2001 study that suggested a taurine-indicine hybrid origin and a 2010 mitochondrial DNA study that found a close relationship to Holstein and Japanese Black cattle.

A working animal before a beef animal

Hanwoo have been selectively bred for more than 5,000 years. For most of that time they were working animals, used for transport and farming, and their compact bodies suited mountainous terrain. They were sometimes sacrificed in religious ceremonies.

Rice straw has long been the main roughage, a feed tied closely to Korea's rice-growing farms. That link between cattle and small family farms shaped the way the breed has been kept, and a scholarly overview of that long history is listed in a comprehensive review of Hanwoo history and breed characteristics.

The rinderpest crisis of the 1600s

Cattle disease nearly reshaped the breed. Invasions in the 1620s and 1630s, the Jin invasion of 1627 and the Qing invasion of 1636, may have spread rinderpest from Manchuria. An outbreak began in October 1627, and a more severe one started in 1636 in Pyongan Province and spread across Joseon.

The royal court banned cattle slaughter. By winter 1637 the disease had reached Jeju Island, where it killed roughly half of the island's 21,000 cattle. In 1638 a delegation to Mongolia, then free of rinderpest, returned with 185 cattle, and breeding programs helped the population recover.

What Made It Work

Hanwoo is not a story of one rancher or one company. It is the story of a breed that stayed useful to ordinary farmers, survived disease and war, and then found a premium market at home.

The record supports these lessons.

  • Fit for the terrain: the compact body suited mountainous Korean farms, which kept the breed valuable as a plow and transport animal.
  • Maternal quality: although milk yield is low, with just over 400 liters in 170 days, cows have good maternal qualities.
  • Recovery by deliberate breeding: after the rinderpest losses of the 1630s, breeding programs helped numbers recover.
  • A herd book: Korea established a herd book in 1968, giving the breed a formal record system.
  • A premium home market: Hanwoo beef is preferred in Korean cuisine over cheaper imports and is used in traditional foods, holiday dishes and gifts.
  • Limits: the population fell from about 1,740,000 in 1940 to 393,000 in 1950, a reminder of how war and disruption can hit a native breed.

Hanwoo numbers over time

The population was about 1,740,000 in 1940 and fell to about 393,000 in 1950. The last recorded rinderpest outbreak in Korea was in 1931, and the disease was declared globally eradicated in 2011.

After the herd book was established in 1968, numbers rebuilt to about 1,240,000 in 2003 and about 2,670,000 in 2014. The FAO listed the breed as not at risk in 2007. For background on Asian cattle genetic resources, the FAO document from its livestock genetic resources series appeared in search results for this profile.

Size, milk and the white Hanwoo

Hanwoo are small. Males average about 466 kg and females about 355 kg, standing about 124 cm and 117 cm tall. A rare white variant has been bred since 2009, and 14 head were reported in 2014.

Hoengseong County is known for Hanwoo and markets its beef as premium. Readers who follow livestock from other countries can browse the ranching section of farm.FM, and a recent farm.FM story about Korean beef cattle adds a modern angle.

Timeline

  1. AntiquitySelective breeding begins, more than 5,000 years ago
  2. 1627Rinderpest outbreak begins in Joseon
  3. 1636More severe outbreak starts in Pyongan Province
  4. 1638Delegation returns from Mongolia with 185 cattle
  5. 1931Last recorded rinderpest outbreak in Korea
  6. 1950Population down to about 393,000
  7. 1968Herd book established
  8. 2014Population about 2,670,000

Frequently asked questions

What is Hanwoo?

Hanwoo, also called Hanu or Korean Native, is a small brown beef cattle breed native to Korea. It is one of four indigenous Korean breeds and is prized for premium beef.

How old is the Hanwoo breed?

Hanwoo have been selectively bred for more than 5,000 years, first as working animals for farming and transport. The herd book was only established in 1968.

How many Hanwoo cattle are there?

About 2,670,000 were reported in 2014, up from about 1,240,000 in 2003. The FAO listed the breed as not at risk in 2007.

Is Hanwoo the same as Kobe beef?

No. Hanwoo is a Korean breed. It shares a common origin with the Japanese Black and Yanbian cattle, but it is a separate native Korean breed with its own herd book.

Sources and further reading

Profiles are compiled from public sources and reviewed against them. See our editorial policy to suggest a correction.

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