South Korean President Moon Jae-in is pondering a prohibition on citizens eating dog meat, USA Today reported.
The issue was raised during a meeting between Moon and Prime Minister Kim Boo-kyum on Monday.
“Hasn’t the time come to prudently consider prohibiting dog meat consumption?,” Moon asked Kim, according to various international media outlets.
Moon is a well-known dog lover, having several canines on his presidential compound and a rescued dog named Tory, according to USA Today.
According to CBS News, an estimated 1 million dogs are eaten annually as part of the country’s daily cuisine.
In 2018, USA Today reported on a dog pound “just miles from the Winter Olympics” in Seoul used explicitly for dog meat, in which more than 300 canines were kept in cages before being put to death.
The country has enacted an animal protection law that prohibits the slaughter of dogs and cats, but it does not ban the consumption of pets at restaurants and establishments.
In a Humane Society International poll conducted in 2020, 84 percent of South Korean citizens surveyed said they have not and would not eat dog meat, and 60 percent supported a legislative ban on the practice.
According to Korean tradition, dog meat is said to have mythical properties that boost restorative powers and increase virility, USA Today noted.