Yulin, located in Guangxi southeast China, is notorious for its Lychee and Dog Meat Festival. The festival is held annually during the summer solstice in June, where thousands of dogs are killed for consumption, most of which are stolen from homes and the streets. Festival goers will celebrate for 10 days by consuming lychees with dog meat, sometimes even cat meat, starting from the 21st of June through to the 30th.
The event is barbaric in nature, ever since the first event in June 2009, and has since become a tradition during the hottest week of the year. Eating dog meat is often called a ‘traditional’ act in China where the belief that eating the meat will bring good luck and health. There have also been accusations that dog meat is consumed due to lack of food or money, but this is not the case. Despite many of the animals being stolen, the meat is still not cheap. In fact, the festival didn’t begin due to traditional beliefs, but was invented by dog traders trying to boost their meat sales. Before the festival started in 2009, Yulin had no long history of mass dog slaughter and consumption.