Michinoku Hanagasa Buta

Nurtured by the pure waters of the Gassan range — a Yamagata brand pork with outstanding umami in its fat.

Michinoku Hanagasa Buta is a Japanese brand pork (meigara-buta) from Yamanobe Town, Higashi-Murayama District, Yamagata Prefecture, managed by Yamagata Pig Farm Co., Ltd. Breed / crossbreeding: Female (Landrace × Large White) × Male Duroc.

Michinoku Hanagasa Buta is produced by Yamagata Pig Farm Co., Ltd. in Yamanobe Town, Higashi-Murayama District, Yamagata Prefecture — a company that manages and continuously improves everything from breeding pig production through to shipment. The breed is a three-breed cross — Landrace × Large White sows with the richly marbling Duroc male. Named in honor of Yamagata’s Hanagasa Matsuri festival, it is a colorful brand packed with the local climate of the production area and the farm’s technique.

Yamanobe Town, where the farm is located, is a land of rich natural beauty blessed by the gifts of the Ou mountain system including Mount Gassan. The pigs are raised carefully with ample pure subterranean water from the Gassan system, and the meat quality is honed in an environment where they can thrive freely. What the farm has long focused on is the independent improvement of its own breeding pigs. Through many generations of original selection and crossbreeding, an original fattening pig of distinctly outstanding fat umami has been completed.

The pigs are raised over approximately 200 days — longer than standard commercial pigs — and a harmony of finely grained, firm lean and a fat of sweetness and deep complexity is born. The rich, aromatic fragrance of the fat that intensifies with heat, and the outpouring of juicy moisture, are truly exceptional.

This brand pork — born of Yamagata’s great nature and years of breed improvement — is a pork in which the power of the ingredient itself stands out. It can bring out its umami across a wide range of preparations — stir-fry and grilled dishes of course, but also shabu-shabu and braised preparations. Please do verify the rich flavors of this brand pork nurtured in a Tohoku mountain village at your own table.

Basic Information

• Name
  Michinoku Hanagasa Buta
• Production Area
  Yamanobe Town, Higashi-Murayama District, Yamagata Prefecture
• Management Body
  Yamagata Pig Farm Co., Ltd.
• Breed / Crossbreeding
  Female (Landrace × Large White) × Male Duroc
• Meat Characteristics
  Meat from breeding stock improved in-house over generations, whose greatest appeal is the rich umami of the fat. A clean sweetness unique to pork raised on the water of the nature-rich Gassan range
• Feed Characteristics
  N/A
• Shipping Age
  200 days
• Annual Production
  Approx. 20,000 head/year
• Signature Dish
  N/A
• Certifications
  Trademark registered: 2010 / Brand regulations established: 2010
• Related URLs
  Yamagata Pig Farm
  Yamagata Brand Pork | Charcoal Grill Di-ken
• Source
  Branded Pork Guidebook 2026, p.52
  Yamagata Pig Farm
  Charcoal Grill Di-ken

Last updated
6/21/2026