Record-setting hanwoo fetches nearly $70,000 at auction

Hanwoo auctioned off at 93 million won. (Dongwon Home Food)

A Korean beef known as hanwoo recently set a record as the highest-priced beef in South Korea, selling for an unprecedented 93 million won ($67,000). The premium-grade hanwoo was purchased by Geumcheon Meat, an online wholesale butcher shop operated by Dongwon Home Food under Dongwon Group.

According to Dongwon Group on Thursday, the auction took place on November 6 at the 27th National Hanwoo Championship in Eumseong, Chungbuk Province, where the hanwoo entry won the Presidential Award, the competition’s highest honor. This hanwoo boasted a 1++A grade, with a live weight of 1,006 kg and a carcass weight of 620 kg. The winning bid of 150,000 won per kilogram was more than seven times the average price for hanwoo in 2024 to date.

The National Hanwoo Championship, an annual event since 1993, was established to improve the breed, increase productivity, and boost farmers’ incomes while enhancing the hanwoo brand’s value in the market.