SEOUL - More than 90 per cent of South Korean respondents said they would not eat dog meat, results of a survey showed on Jan 8, as the government seeks to pass a Bill prohibiting dog meat consumption in the country.

In a survey of 2,000 adults across the country conducted by Korean animal rights group Aware from Dec 12 to 17, 2023, 93.4 per cent of respondents answered that they have no intention of eating dog meat in the future, up from 88.6 per cent in a survey conducted by the same group in 2022.

The survey also indicated dog meat is enjoyed by only a small portion of the population, as 94.5 per cent of respondents reported that they had not eaten dog in the past year.

The apparent disapproval towards the consumption of dog meat was prevalent among both pet owners and those without pets, with 94.7 per cent of respondents who owned pets declaring they would not eat dog meat, and 92.7 per cent of those without pets saying the same.

When asked the reasons behind not wanting to consume dog meat, 53.5 per cent said they were “emotionally repulsed”, while 18.4 per cent said they took issue with the brutal process of breeding and butchering dogs. Another 7.1 per cent said they were mindful of the negative perception towards dog meat from the rest of society.

Aware’s survey suggested that a growing percentage of the population is favourable towards a dog meat ban, with the percentage of those supporting a ban rising to 82.3 per cent from 72.8 per cent in 2022. About 60.9 per cent of respondents said the law will “reduce the number of dogs in pain”.

“The survey proves that the people (of South Korea) no longer regard dogs as ‘food’, and that they are asking for the issue of dog meat consumption to be resolved through legislation,” the group’s chief Lee Yung-ju said.

Most dog meat in South Korea is produced through 1,156 farms across the country. These farms breed the animals specifically for meat, according to research by a government-civilian committee working on legislation for a dog meat ban. The committee was launched in 2023.

An annual average of 388,000 dogs are thought to be consumed at some 1,600 restaurants across the country, according to the committee.

Upon taking office, the incumbent Yoon Suk-yeol administration launched a drive to end dog meat consumption, which has sparked backlash from those working in the industry. The Dog Meat Federation, a group of those who breed dogs for meat, has been protesting the government plan and demanding financial compensation. THE KOREA HERALD/ASIA NEWS NETWORK