Moran Market’s Last Chobok Shows Dog Meat Ban Era Already Taking Hold

Moran Market in Seongnam marked its last Chobok season before South Korea’s Dog Meat Ban takes full effect with quiet streets, fewer restaurants and a visible shift toward black goat soup. Reports from the market in mid-July 2026 described a food district already moving away from dog meat, months before the legal grace period ends in February 2027.

Chobok, the first of the three hottest summer days traditionally associated with restorative foods, has long been tied to demand for boshintang, or dog meat stew. But at Moran Market, once one of the country’s best-known dog meat trading areas, signs for black goat soup now dominate, dog meat listings are less visible, and only a limited number of businesses remain active in the trade.¹

Moran Market’s Last Chobok Was Muted

Moran Market last Chobok restaurant menu shift dog meat ban

The Korea Times reported on July 15 that many Moran Market restaurants had changed their exterior signs to black goat soup, while dog meat stew was often placed deeper in menus rather than displayed prominently. Ministry of Food and Drug Safety figures cited in the report showed that, by the end of May, 563 affected restaurants had changed business and 336 had closed among 4,154 businesses, a combined transition or closure rate of 21.6 percent.¹

Korea Hankook Ilbo described the market two days before Chobok as quiet despite the seasonal “boknal” period, with only about a dozen tonic-food restaurants still open on the black-goat specialty street and few customers in sight. A Moran Market butcher and restaurant owner, identified as Joo, said in Korean: “There are no customers looking for dog meat, and only a few places still sell dog meat.”²

MoneyToday visited Moran Market at lunchtime on Chobok and reported that the dog-meat alley was largely quiet, although some restaurants still drew customers. The report described many seats as empty, showing that the final Chobok before the end of the grace period did not produce the broad rush once associated with the market.³

The contrast is sharp in the market’s own memory. A 64-year-old Moran Market dog-meat restaurant owner, identified as Kim, told MoneyToday that in the past “there were so many customers that we sold 240 servings of dog meat a day.”³

Key Dates, Figures And Market Changes

The shift at Moran Market is part of a wider legal and supply-chain transition. Under the 2024 special law, breeding, slaughter, distribution and sales of dogs for food will be fully prohibited from February 7, 2027, after a grace period.³

Newsis reported from Moran Market on July 7, one week before Chobok, that visible dog-meat signage had mostly disappeared and black-goat restaurant signs dominated the former livestock street. The same report cited Jungwon District Office figures showing 40 dog-meat-related businesses in the district, including 24 health-extract shops and 16 restaurants.⁴

Prices also reflect shrinking supply. Korea Hankook Ilbo reported that dog meat prices had risen from about 10,000 won per 600 grams to the mid-20,000 won range after 80 percent of dog-meat farms closed.² MoneyToday separately reported that dog meat was selling for 45,000 to 50,000 won per kilogram as supply fell after about 82 percent of farms closed.³

Item	Reported figure or date	Source-backed context
Full ban effective date	February 7, 2027	Breeding, slaughter, distribution and sales for food fully prohibited under the 2024 law.³
Restaurant transition or closure	899 of 4,154 businesses	563 changed business and 336 closed by the end of May, or 21.6 percent.¹
Jungwon District dog-meat-related businesses	40	24 health-extract shops and 16 restaurants.⁴
Dog-meat farms closed	1,265 of 1,537	272 farms remained, based on Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs figures reported July 1.⁵
Dogs raised for meat	About 20,000 to 30,000	Down from about 460,000 in May 2024.⁵
Reported dog meat price	45,000 to 50,000 won per kg	Reported at Moran Market as supply tightened.³

Farm Closures Remain The Main Test

Beyond restaurant signs and Chobok foot traffic, the remaining challenge is the closure of farms that still supply the trade. MoneyToday reported on July 1 that 1,265 of 1,537 dog-meat farms had closed, leaving 272 still in operation. The number of dogs raised for meat had fallen from about 460,000 in May 2024 to an estimated 20,000 to 30,000.⁵

The report identified closure of the remaining farms as the main task before the February 7, 2027 deadline, particularly for farms affected by issues such as illegal structures or manure-facility reporting problems that could exclude them from some support.⁵

Animal groups also raised concerns before the final Chobok. DailyVet reported that groups held a press conference at Gwanghwamun Square on July 14, criticizing the Agriculture Ministry for emphasizing farm-closure statistics while, in their view, not adequately tracking surviving dogs or suspected illegal slaughter.⁶

Quick FAQ

When does the Dog Meat Ban fully take effect?

The full prohibition takes effect on February 7, 2027. From that date, breeding, slaughter, distribution and sales of dogs for food are banned under the 2024 law.³

Is eating dog meat already illegal before February 7, 2027?

The supplied reports state that this is the final summer season in which dog meat can legally be eaten before the trade and related breeding, slaughter, distribution and sales are banned from February 2027. They do not provide additional details on individual consumption rules beyond that transition period.² !Moran Market dog meat ban 2027 last Chobok South Korea Moran Market’s final Chobok before the ban’s enforcement deadline shows a trade already contracting through closures, menu changes, higher prices and shrinking farm numbers. The legal endpoint is still months away, but the market most associated with the old dog-meat economy is already operating in the shadow of its end.