Pyongyang authorities recently ordered the Pyongyang Soju Factory to produce “high-quality soju for the people” ahead of the solar New Year holiday, Daily NK has learned.
Speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons, a Daily NK source in Pyongyang said last Thursday that the factory is ramping up production after Pyongyang’s city authorities ordered it last month to “produce high-quality soju to provide the people, given how little time remains until the solar New Year.”
Pyongyang municipal authorities have also suddenly started calling Pyongyang Soju the “national liquor” — something they were not doing previously — while ordering the factory to maintain the alcohol’s “unique quality befitting Korea’s national liquor,” the source said.
“Pyongyang [city officials] stressed that [the factory] must enable people to drink with patriotism and pride by promoting the national liquor far and wide for the solar New Year, noting that Pyongyang Soju hasn’t enjoyed the popularity befitting a national liquor.”
The city also called on factory managers to supervise product quality more thoroughly than ever, explaining that Pyongyang Soju must maintain top levels of quality for the beverage to enjoy overseas renown.
“Pyongyang Soju Factory sometimes slapped its label on ordinary soju because it couldn’t produce its product on time, and there’s been markets and shops selling fake Pyongyang Soju, so the city demanded an absolute end to such phenomena,” the source said.
Pyongyang authorities have warned they will heavily punish those who distribute fake Pyongyang Soju for committing “non-socialist acts.”
City officials have ordered households in neighborhood watch units to collect empty bottles and send them to Pyongyang Soju Factory to ease liquor production. They also warned that officials would stop pilfering or surpluses by taking daily comparative measurements of the number of empty bottles sent and the amount of liquor produced.
“Pyongyang authorities are threatening to severely punish factory officials or workers who secretly steal liquor to take home or sell to markets for the crime of embezzling state property and non-socialist acts,” the source said.
Translated by David Black. Edited by Robert Lauler.
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