Disputes over eating dog meat
Disputes over eating dog meat often get fiercer with the sweltering summer heat. Seoul City's recent announcement to launch sanitation inspections of dog meat restaurants has triggered a fresh round of debate over ``bosintang,'' or dog meat.
City officials say the inspection does not mean that it acknowledges dog meat dishes as food. But the inspection, the first in about 20 years, can be seen as an attempt to allow the sale of dog meat. Currently, dogs are not categorized as livestock requiring inspection.
A team of inspectors from the city government Wednesday raided restaurants in northern Seoul, which specialize in so-called invigorating food such as bosintang, or dog meat soup, and samgyetang, or chicken broth.
``It is necessary to check hygiene conditions of restaurants that serve bostintang and samgyetang in the season when consumption of such dishes is at its peak,'' said Oh Jae-hyo, an official from the food safety division of Seoul Metropolitan Government. ``Diners may have dishes cooked in unsanitary conditions.''
They checked the storage of ingredients and hygiene conditions of kitchen facilities. They also took samples of dog meat and chicken for investigation of harmful substances.
But it only seems to convey symbolic warning to restaurant owners as the team of three inspectors along with one supervisor from a civic group checked only 30 randomly-chosen restaurants during the four-day inspection.
``We have only limited manpower, which does not allow us to properly regulate restaurants and monitor their sanitation conditions,'' Oh said. ``But we will continue the inspection later.''
However, restaurant owners were perplexed by the sudden visit since it was first inspection of dog meat restaurants since 1988, when the country was preparing for the Seoul Olympic Games.
They feared that the inspection might cause severe damage to their business in the peak season.
``We have been in bad business and it worries me that the inspection will keep our guests from dining here,'' the owner of restaurant Ssarigol said. ``We do our best to serve delicious and safe dishes.