it lacksks that d distinctive t of k kobe bebeef. the restaurant's owner agreed to be interviewed. kralt raised in brazil. he admitted he's trading in on kobe beef strong-name recognition. >> we call it tropical beef because of the cattle raised in south america. we decided to call it tropical kobe beef because people don't know what that means. >> reporter: it's a sign of just how openly the kobe beef brand is being abused. the kobe beef association is keeping a close eye on cases like this. it received 140 reposts from abroad of mimislabeling. >> reporter: authentic kobe beef cold cost $14,000 which is fake one can fetch hundreds of dollars but there are fears that widespread mislabeling will damage the brand so much that prices will drop. >> translator: our meat is the only authentic kobe beef. we hope to eliminate kobe on labelsls for anything else.. >> reporter: japan's economic partnership took effect last february to protect regional brands. governments are allowed to take measures if they come across mislabeled products. japan's foreign ministry asked the eu to hold the dist