• South Korea has officially banned the dog meat industry.
• The ban will come into force in 2027, after a transition period for industry operators.
• Animal rights organisations had long been campaigning for this outcome.

South Korea's National Assembly, on Tuesday 9 January 2024, kept the promise made to animal rights organisations at the end of 2023. By passing a law that bans, once and for all, the dog meat industry. The ban will come into force from 2027 and will provide for heavy financial penalties, or even imprisonment, for those who break it.

What the ban on dog meat in South Korea entails

The consumption of dog meat, which has become culturally unacceptable in much of the world, still exists in Asia. And it results in the slaughter of thirty million dogs across the continent every year, of which around one million in South Korea. In a country where approximately six million dogs are welcomed into families as pets, however, this supply chain is increasingly marginal and criticised by the population. So much so that 86 per cent of people surveyed in a recent poll say they have no intention of consuming dog meat in the future.

Backed by support from citizens, animal rights organisations have long been campaigning for a ban. Which the National Assembly has, in the end, approved. After a transition period needed to convert the industry, from 2027 it will be forbidden to breed, slaughter and sell dogs and dog meat for human consumption. The penalty amounts to around €14,000 for breeding and selling, and rises to around €20,700, or up to three years' imprisonment, for slaughter.

Three years to close or convert businesses

To support the sector through the transition, the government will offer farmers, slaughterhouses and restaurants the opportunity to apply for compensation. It will then support them in closing or converting their operations. NGOs have also long been active in this regard: since 2015, Humane Society International itself has helped eighteen farmers to change sector, moving into crop farming, for example.

"This is a historic moment. I never thought I would see in my lifetime a ban on the cruel dog meat industry in South Korea, but this landmark victory for animals is testament to the passion and determination of our movement," says JungAh Chae, executive director for South Korea of the animal rights organisation Humane Society International.