South Korea finally banning the sale of dog meat

The South Korean dog meat trade will officially end in 2027 after a bill was passed making the slaughter of dogs and the sale of dog meat for human consumption illegal in the country (though the consumption of dog meat will still be legal). People who violate this new law could be fined up to 30 million won (US$22,311) and be jailed for three years.

The news has been embraced in South Korea as a long-awaited victory by many animal protection organizations. But it has also been received very negatively by pro-dog-meat associations, as the livelihoods of dog meat farmers and retailers will be directly affected by this legislation.

Dog meat is the fourth-most consumed meat in South Korea after pork, beef and chicken. However, the practice of eating dogs has been in sharp decline over the past few decades and has divided South Korean society for more than half a century.

For some, the trade represents resistance against cultural imperialism. For others, it is an obstacle to modernity. All the while, little attention is given to the fate of other animals whose death and commodification as meat are largely normalized and accepted.

Stigmatization of a practice

Dog consumption has a long history in Korea. Some Korean scholars point to the excavation of dog bones from Korean relics dating to the Neolithic age (roughly from 6000BC to 2000BC) as evidence that dogs have been eaten since at least that period.

But an important moment of national and international friction around the practice occurred in the run-up to the 1988 Seoul Olympic Games. The South Korean government at the time banned the sale of dog meat temporarily in the traditional markets of the capital and asked dog meat retailers to remove dog carcasses from their