March 2026 NEBRASKA CATTLEMAN 25 senior steer class. Mino won Reserve Champion Hereford in the baby beef class. While he and his brother’s children were showing champion Herefords, George kept in contact with his family in Japan. Presumably, the Matsutanis’ successes in the show ring and successful feeding operation were the subject of letters back and forth. Eventually, someone had the idea of starting a Hereford herd in Japan. It had intriguing economic possibilities. After all, breeding for better beef products was beginning to take off in Japan, and there might be a market for American cattle. So, in 1931, George exported the first purebred Hereford to Japan. The bull was bred and raised by the Shoup brothers. George acquired the animal and arranged for it to be shipped to a relative in Japan. A new market was born. In the coming years he would send additional cattle to Japan. Whether he knew it or not, this and his expertise in feeding cattle and choosing champion stock for his sons and nephews came to the attention of the Japanese government. It would have far-reaching consequences for his family. At what seemed like the height of George Matsutani’s stock-raising fame, a dramatic change in the family took place. After a short illness with pneumonia, Ichio, George’s eldest son, passed away. Ichio had been planning to go to Japan to work for the Japanese government after high school graduation. Was it because of his knowledge of cattle? We may never know. What is certain is that the death of his eldest son must have come as a shock to George. What happened next seems to have been his way of starting anew. In 1934, George sold all of his farm equipment and supplies, and prepared to move back to Japan to take a position with the Japanese government in Kobe teaching animal husbandry. Jack and his family remained in the United States and continued farming. Most news articles state that George was planning on being in Japan for a year, which would allow his children to visit their elderly grandparents and tour the country before returning to the United States. However, a year turned into years and, before long, history overtook the family. Japan bombed Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, and any thought of returning to the United States came to an end. No word was heard of the Matsutani family until after the war. Then, in late 1945, a sailor from Paxton was on the beach in Japan and ran into a woman selling silk. She said she was a Matsutani who had left Paxton when she was 15. She was one of George’s daughters. The young sailor was floored. He wrote back, hoping Jack’s family would receive word about his brother’s family. The war was hard on the family but, far from their Nebraska home, they had made the best of their circumstances. George and Jack Matsutani’s story is a uniquely American one. These two brothers from Japan came to Nebraska and through hard work and good business practices, became successful cattlemen and farmers. Along the way, George made significant contributions to the cattle industry. His ability to pick top-quality stock and feed them to perfection was shown in his son’s and nephew’s awards. Maybe just as important, he helped introduce Japan to American beef. He, like so many, helped make Nebraska beef the best beef in the world. ~NC~
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NTMxNTA5