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70% of dog farms in Korea closed business in 1st year of dog meat ban: Agriculture Ministry

Published: 14 Aug. 2025, 10:23

A dog meat restaurant in Seoul is seen vacant on Spet. 26, 2024, as the Ministry of Agriculture annoucned a plan to ban dog meat the same day. [YONHAP]

Seven out of 10 dog farms in Korea have closed their doors since the country enacted a law banning dog meat consumption a year earlier, the Agriculture Ministry said Thursday.

Of a total of 1,537 dog farms nationwide, 1,072, or 70 percent, have shut down their operations since the special bill on banning dog meat consumption took effect in August last year, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

The shuttered farms had raised 346,000 dogs, which accounted for 74 percent of the 468,000 dogs raised for meat across the country.

By the end of 2025, more than 75 percent of the farms are expected to have closed their doors, according to the ministry.

A ministry official said the closure rate was higher than expected thanks to growing public awareness that it is the "task of this generation" to end dog meat consumption and government incentives.

The special legislation bans the breeding, butchering, distributing and selling of dogs for meat. It also calls for subsidies to help people in the dog meat industry switch jobs.

Following a three-year grace period, violators of the law will face a maximum sentence of two years in prison or a fine of up to 30 million won ($21,753), starting in 2027.

Yonhap