North Koreans eat dogs to reduce heat

Agency
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 scraped or granita- and restaurants serve dish after dish of the main culinary attraction of the season: spicy soup of dog meat . [19659002] You Might Also Like: What's Better? Drinking hot or cold water during the hot season

Popularly known as "dangogi" or sweet meat, it has long been thought that the dog is an energetic food in North Korea and in South Korea.

The dates are adjusted to the lunar calendar, and dog meat consumption is centered around the "sambok", or the three hottest days: 17 and 27 July and 16 August this year. This year, the demand is particularly strong because of the heat wave that strikes East Asia. 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 meat But in South Korea, where even President Moon Jae-in has dogs as pets, they sacrifice and eat at least two million animals a year, even when their popularity as food is dwindling. Although many South Korean elders believe that dog meat is an aphrodisiac the youngest people oppose this practice or are indifferent to it, and there is pressure for it. prohibit completely.

On the sides of the demilitarized zone, dogs intended for human consumption are raised on farms for this purpose.

"This has been our national food since ancient times," says Kim Ae Kyong, waitress at the Pyongyang Sweet Meat House. The largest restaurant specializing in dog meat in the North Korean capital.

"People believe that heat heals the heat, so they eat dog meat and spicy soup for the hottest days. It's healthier than other types of meat .

The restaurant's menu includes over a dozen dog meat dishes, including ribs, paws and boiled dog skin.

It is more common to see people walking their dogs with leashes in the streets of Pyongyang and other northern cities, a trend that has only begun to be adopted in recent years. However, in rural areas, it is common to see abandoned dogs

Chief Kim Jong's position on the consumption of dog meat is unknown.