North Koreans eat dog meat to fight heat

PYONGYANG, North Korea.- The summer is not a good time to be a dog in North Korea.

In the intense heat, the main brewery of North Korea sells twice as much as usual, the people of Pyongyang do long lines to buy a "bingsu" – a shaved or granita- and restaurants serve dish after dish of the main culinary attraction of the season: spicy dog ​​meat soup.

Popularly known as "dangogi" or sweet meat, it has long been believed that the dog is an energy food in North and South Korea, and is traditionally eaten during the hottest period of time. l & # 39; year.

Dates are adjusted to the lunar calendar, and dog meat consumption is centered around [sambok] or the hottest three days: July 17 and 27 and August 16 of this year ] o. This year, the demand is particularly high because of the heat wave that strikes East Asia. The temperatures in North Korea are among the highest ever recorded and are around 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) in several cities.

Like almost everything in North Korea, there are no reliable statistics on the amount of dog meat eaten.

But in South Korea, where even President Moon Jae-in has dogs as pets, they slaughter and eat at least two million animals a year, even when their popularity as food decreases.