On January 9, 2024, the National Assembly of South Korea unanimously passed a law banning the production and sale of dog meat, to take effect in three years.

[10] Scholars widely agree that dog meat has never been a key part of the Korean diet, but it's understood to have had some role in their culture.

[10][11] It is uncertain when exactly Koreans began first consuming dog meat, although many scholars trace it to the Neolithic period (6000–2000 BCE) alongside other early civilizations in East Asia.

[12] A wall painting in the Goguryeo tombs complex in South Hwanghae Province, North Korea, a UNESCO World Heritage site dating from the 4th century CE, depicts a slaughtered dog.

[10] Around 1816, a son of prominent scholar Jeong Yak-yong wrote a poem called Nonggawŏllyŏngga (농가월령가) that described seasonal practices of rural populations.

[18] Some people have historically associated Sambok [ko], the three hottest days of summer according to the lunar calendar, with the consumption of bosintang, a dog meat-based dish, although this practice is increasingly rare.

[23] A 2022 Chosun Ilbo report found that customers of the dog meat market tended to be foreigners or elderly (above 70 years old).

[24] By 2019 all major dog meat markets had shut down across South Korea, mainly due to declining sales.

[31] In 2022, the Ministry for Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of South Korea published a first official report called "Edible dog breeding and distribution survey".

[36] The primary dog breed raised for meat is a non-specific landrace commonly named as Nureongi (누렁이), or Hwanggu (황구).

The charity documents every farm closure to show the conditions, and it is clear that all breeds of dog are found on these facilities including golden retrievers, beagles, poodles and huskies alongside tosas and jindos.

I don’t think we are planning to even consider this option.”[49] In June 2018, the municipal court of the city of Bucheon ruled that killing dogs for their meat was illegal.

[50] On September 27, 2021, South Korean President Moon Jae-in raised the possibility of a ban on dog meat consumption in the country.

[51] On November 17, 2023, the ruling People Power Party declared their plans for a ban of the consumption of dog meat in the country.

Lawmaker Yu Eui-dong stated that they would "provide full support to farmers, butchers and other businesses facing closure or transition" from the law.

[57] In 2001, prior to the 2002 FIFA World Cup,[58][59] the organizers of the games, under pressure from animal rights groups such as PETA, demanded that the South Korean government re-address the issue.

Bardot was in turn heavily critiqued and ridiculed for being extremely rude and condescending in her public interactions, which included calling South Koreans "savage people" and hanging up on reporters during televised interviews.

[61] Azer's statements sparked a wave of criticism among animal rights advocates and rescuers in Egypt, although no such plans were ever proven to be in place.

This statement was made when major dog meat markets had already shut down in South Korea due to lack of demand.

An example is TV host Jay Leno, who had repeatedly recycled stereotypes of South Koreans eating dog meat in his jokes.

[65] The MCIC Group filed a class-action lawsuit against Leno on behalf of 50,000 Korean Americans, demanding an apology and monetary damages.

[69][70][71] In South Korea, a minority of people regularly consume dog meat, predominantly as Bosintang (lit.

[74] The charity World Dog Alliance raised a successful online petition in 2012 calling for the UK Government to intervene and oppose the cruelty.

Liberals who confront Confucian social conservatism in South Korea, criticize dog meat culture as immoral.

[82] Ahn Cheol-soo pledged to gradually ban dog meat eating during the 2017 South Korean presidential election.