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South Korea Dog Meat Farms Drop to 20,000 Ahead of 2027 Ban
The number of dogs raised for meat has fallen sharply as 82 percent of farms apply to close. Most unaccounted animals were likely killed, activists and former farmers say.
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South Korea's dog meat industry has contracted sharply ahead of a nationwide ban taking effect next year. Government estimates show the number of dogs raised for meat has fallen from between 400,000 and 450,000 in 2024 to about 20,000 as of June 2026, @AFP reported. The law passed in January 2024 bans the breeding, slaughter and sale of dogs for food.
It takes effect in February 2027, with violators facing prison sentences of up to three years. An abandoned slaughter facility in Pyeongtaek, south of Seoul, shows the industry's decline. Electric prods rest against walls near rusty cages containing dog skulls at the site.
The government offered up to 600,000 won, about $390, for each dog removed from farms. Data obtained by a lawmaker showed that by February 2026 only 623 dogs had been adopted and just under 500 sent to shelters. Animal welfare groups say most of the rest were likely killed.
CARE has rescued and rehomed about 2,500 farmed dogs over two decades, with only about two dozen adopted inside South Korea. KARA rescued 29 dogs from the Pyeongtaek farm last month and filed a complaint against the owner for animal cruelty. Former farmer Ju Yeong-bong, who started his operation in 1994, said the ban felt like a betrayal imposed without adequate support for livelihoods.
He acknowledged that many unaccounted dogs had likely already been eaten. According to the agriculture ministry, 1,265 dog farms, about 82 percent of the total, had applied to shut down as of May.
