Yuri Kobzar17:27, 06.01.25

The soup fell into disfavor because of its “capitalist” origins.

In North Korea, the preparation of a popular sausage soup has been banned under threat of imprisonment because it originates from South Korea. This was reported by the British tabloid The Sun, citing a market worker from the northern province of Yanggang.

Budae-jjigae is a spicy soup with noodles, sausages, ham, beans and other ingredients that originated in South Korea and is very popular in that country. In 2017, the soup was brought to North Korea and quickly gained popularity there as well.

However, in 2024, Pyongyang banned the preparation of budae-jigae due to its South Korean origin. Anyone selling it on the street or preparing it at home risks being sent to a labor camp.

“The sale of budae-jige at the market has stopped. The police and the market administration said that anyone caught selling it will be closed,” the saleswoman said.

North Koreans can also be punished for other things that are taboo in the rest of the world. Radio Free Asia reported in December that the government has recently significantly increased the penalties for divorce, which is not technically illegal in the country.

According to Koreans interviewed by journalists, previously only the spouse who initiated the divorce was punished, even if it was a woman who was subjected to physical violence by her husband. But now, after the divorce is formalized, both face imprisonment for a period of 1 to 6 months.

“I went to the Kimjeongsuk County People’s Court… where 12 people were given a divorce decree. They were immediately transferred to a county labor camp after the verdict,” a resident of the northern province of Yanggang, who wished to remain anonymous, told the publication.

The woman said that the number of divorces has increased rapidly since 2020. With the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the entire country was under lockdown, and most families found it very difficult to make a living. The poor economic conditions led to the breakdown of many marriages. To prevent couples from divorcing, the government began to punish divorcees.

(c)UNIAN 2025