History of meat consumption in Japan

Meat products, referring to non-maritime animals, were historically not developed as part of Japanese cuisine due to the influence of Buddhist vegetarianism, political idealism, and scarcity.

In 675 AD, Emperor Tenmu imposed a ban on the consumption of meat of chicken, cows, dogs, horses, and monkeys, as well as small fry fish between April 1 and September 30 of each year.

Tenmu, a well-known sponsor of Buddhism, was likely influenced by the Buddhist principle of transmigration, that implied a compassion for all living beings, as well as ideas of purity related to blood and dead bodies rooted in Shintoism.

[4] However the fact that the ban did not mention deer or wild boar, the two most commonly eaten meats in Japan, suggests that influences other than Buddhist morality helped to shape it.

[6] After Tenmu's edict, occupations such as tanning hides and slaughtering animals came to be highly stigmatized and were carried out by members of the hereditary classes known as eta (distinct from the hinin that compose the larger group today known as burakumin).

Because, historically, the raising of animals as livestock for eating was not developed in Japan, most meat eaten was hunted rather than farmed, although this focused largely on fish and fowl.

Mammals were increasingly hunted by the new bushi warrior class; descriptions of their lives mention them feasting on, among others, deer, wild boars, bears, raccoon dogs (tanuki), serows, rabbits, and otters.

[11] Particularly in Kyushu, where the Nanban trade and culture began and flourished, the consumption of meat increased significantly, with accounts of armies moving live pigs onto battlefields in order to feed soldiers.

[11] This was, at least in part, inspired by a desire to increase meat consumption to boost military power and national prosperity; meat-eating was considered a symbol of bunmei-kaika (civilization and enlightenment) and Westernization.

[13] However the culture of meat-eating, particularly in public and by non-eta Japanese people, had already begun, although it tended to be in areas, such as port cities, with large numbers of foreigners.

[18] Okinawa Prefecture, previously the Ryukyu Kingdom, has historically had a different relationship with meat and diet compared to the more northern parts of Japan due to its status as a vassal of China.

Compared to mainland Japan, where many people follow a vegetarian diet for religious occasions, pork is included in dishes served at funerals.