With growing support among South Koreans for a ban against dog meat, the South Korean government has announced its plan to set up a task force dedicated to enforcing a ban on the consumption of dog meat. Discussions of how best to tackle the situation will be continuing into 2022, with dedicated members of civilian experts and stakeholder representatives.
A poll in 2020 by Humane Society International/Korea showed that there was growing support for the ban of dog meat, with almost 84% stating that they don’t or won’t eat dog, with almost 60% supporting a complete ban on the dog meat trade. Already the meat is banned in Hong Kong, Taiwan, Thailand and Singapore, as well as cities in mainland China. The ban on dog meat would mean up to 30 million dogs could be saved from the inhumane trade each year. Many of these animals are illegally acquired from the streets and illegally transported across borders without the necessary paperwork.
Currently the Humane Society International works with farmers in South Korea to help them transition to new humane livelihoods, such as water delivery or vegetable farming, consequently helping to permanently close their dog meat farms and preventing furthering suffering for the dogs. The dogs are then prepared for adoption into loving homes throughout the USA, UK and Canada. Through hard work and commitment, this has shown to the South Korean government that it is more than feasible to shut down the dog meat trade industry.
So far the HSI has rescued almost 2,500 dogs from the trade, and counting. With current ongoing work and current government talks taking place throughout 2021 and 2022, there is hope that this cruel trade will finally come to an end.
Nara Kim, Humane Society International/Korea’s End Dog Meat campaign manager, says:
“As someone who has visited many dog meat farms and witnessed first-hand the squalor, deprivation, and physical and mental trauma endured by the dogs, I dream of the day when this cruel industry will be consigned to South Korea’s history books. I really hope that this taskforce is a crucial step towards that goal, and HSI/Korea stands ready to contribute our expertise in dog meat farm closures and dog welfare.”