State Media Urges North Koreans to Eat Dog Soup in Heatwave

​As a brutal, century-peak heatwave bakes the Korean peninsula, North Korea’s state media has launched an unconventional campaign to help citizens cope with soaring temperatures: turning to traditional dog soup.

​The ruling party’s official newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, recently featured an extensive health advisory containing an interview with a top physician from Pyongyang General Hospital. Amid warnings that the intense heat can severely exacerbate conditions like cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, and hyperthyroidism, the publication heavily promoted dangogi guk—literally translated as “sweet meat soup”.

​Described by state organs as a highly nutritious stamina booster capable of fending off heat exhaustion and boosting immune defenses, the dish occupies a prominent place in North Korean culinary culture. Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un is widely reported to be an avid consumer of the delicacy, frequently featuring specialty dog dishes at state banquets and official dinner parties.

ADVERTISEMENT

​While Pyongyang continues to champion the dish as a patriotic health tonic for enduring the scorching “dog days” of summer—with daytime temperatures in parts of the country threatening to cross 40°C—the stance highlights a stark cultural divide on the peninsula. South Korea enacted historic legislation to phase out and ban the breeding, slaughter, and commercial sale of dog meat, setting up a complete prohibition.

​Despite state promotion and specialized restaurants along Pyongyang’s Taedong River, human rights advocates and defectors note that dangogi remains an expensive luxury, often placing the purported “cure” out of reach for ordinary citizens struggling through the region’s agricultural crisis and historic heat.