Following legislation banning the dog meat trade in South Korea, Japan has advice: try dolphin and whale. 

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said, “I’m so happy to see South Korea leave this horrific animal cruelty in the past. It’s Japan’s recommendation that South Koreans transition to dolphin and whale.” 

South Korean restaurants previously selling dog meat embraced the idea of offering dolphin and whale. One restaurant owner told PBFN, “We’ve actually been selling bycatch in restaurants for years. Whale is a delicacy. We have a lot of bycatch accidents in South Korea.”

While restaurants selling dog meat are more suited to transition to dolphin and whale meat, the Korean Dog Meat Federation replied to the Japanese Prime Minister with a request for information on whaling as “research.” Up until 2019, the Japanese government claimed its whaling was not for consumption but research.

“We’re very interested in transitioning our dog meat farms into dog research farms. While we admire Japan’s whaling “research,” we’re also interested in the animal testing that happens on over 65,000 dogs in laboratories across the US.” said Ju Yeongbong, an official of the South Korean farmers’ association. “There is a great opportunity for our restaurant partners with dolphins and whales and great opportunity for our dog meat farmers to transition to dog laboratories. The Federation of Dog Meat Farmers hopes this isn’t the end; but rather, a new beginning.”