Korea Institute for Animal Products Quality Evaluation opens AI-captured loin cross-section images to private retailers; system first applied to Minsokchinhanu online store; expansion to wholesalers planned
![A cross-section image of Korean beef loin captured by an AI-based cattle grading system. Consumers can check the actual marbling condition by linking the image to the animal's traceability number. At right, a livestock product quality evaluator uses the AI-based cattle grading equipment to photograph a Korean beef loin cross-section. The captured images are used with deep-learning technology to measure the loin eye area and intramuscular fat content, among other indicators. [Korea Institute for Animal Products Quality Evaluation]](https://wimg.heraldcorp.com/news/cms/2026/08/26/news-p.v1.20260826.93ea18220326419eb9cba233859d6c80_P1.png)
Online shoppers buying Korean beef can now do more than check a grade label — they can view an actual photo of the meat's marbling before placing an order. The change comes as AI-captured cross-section images taken at slaughterhouses during the grading process are now being shared with online retailers, letting consumers see the condition of the beef for themselves.
The Korea Institute for Animal Products Quality Evaluation announced Wednesday that it has built a system allowing private retailers to display loin cross-section images — captured by its AI-based cattle grading equipment — on their online stores.
The institute currently operates AI-based cattle grading equipment at 51 slaughterhouses nationwide. When the equipment photographs a cow's loin cross-section, deep-learning technology automatically measures the loin eye area and intramuscular fat content. Livestock product quality evaluators then use that data to determine the final grade.
Until now, those images were used primarily as data for the grading process itself, but retailers had repeatedly called on the institute to open them up for use in actual sales. Taking that feedback into account, the institute last month completed a system that lets private companies link the AI grading images directly to their own shopping platforms.
The first retailer to adopt the system is Minsokchinhanu, a packer-type company that manages Korean beef from production through sales. Since Thursday, customers on its online store have been able to view not only a product's official grade but also the actual loin cross-section image before making a purchase.
A key feature is the ability to see the intramuscular fat — commonly known as marbling — that consumers pay close attention to when buying Korean beef. The images shown are those captured by AI equipment during the official grading process, not product photos taken separately by the seller.
The institute plans to expand the system by accepting applications from wholesale companies. The broader goal is to open up data accumulated during the AI grading process to the private retail sector, giving consumers access to more information about the livestock products they buy.
"We will actively open up information accumulated through AI-based grading equipment to the private sector, building a retail environment where consumers can purchase livestock products with confidence," institute President Park Su-jin said.
adastra@heraldcorp.com
