Bengal Meat basks in halal boom

Bengal Meat Processing Industries, an internationally certified meat producer and exporter, expects to ring up Tk 400 million in overseas sales this year by doubling its halal meat export.

The company was recently awarded halal certification by the Department of Islamic Development, Malaysia (JAKIM), which allows it to export processed meat to any halal market around the world.

"We now export 1000 tonnes meat a year and our target is to make 5000 tonnes by 2012," Mazharul Islam, managing director of Bengal Meat, told the FE in an interview.

He said they exported processed meat worth Tk 200 million last year.

The export market is confined to a few Middle Eastern countries like Kuwait, UAE and Saudi Arabia for the last seven years, mainly targetting expatriate Bangladeshis and other ethnic Muslims in those countries, only adding Malaysia to the list this year.

Dato Tan Lian Hoe, deputy minister for trade of Malaysia, welcomed the Bangladeshi meat processing company, which has achieved the certification of her country during the opening ceremony of a three-day Malaysian trade fair in the city.

She also visited the Bengal Meat factory at Pabna further facilitating the entry of Bangladeshi halal processed meat to the Malaysian market.

Mr Islam said that his factory, the only ISO certified meat processing company, can be compared with any international standard factory but stressed the government's effort to ensure certain issues for the development of meat processing industry in Bangladesh.

"The process of entering the Malaysian market began almost two and half years ago. We as a factory had no problem to be approved by any country but the government must ensure animal health management, disease control and disease free zone to promote Bangladesh as a meat exporting country," he said.

Although Bangladesh has the 7th largest cattle population in the world, it has one of the lowest per capita meat consumption.

"Generally, a person should intake 100 to 110 gm of protein. In Bangladesh, the per capita meat consumption is 12 gm," Mr. Islam added.

He said about 10,000 cows are producing about 1000 tonnes of meat and 40,000 goats producing about 300 tonnes are slaughtered everyday in the country.

He added the per capita meat consumption is bound to increase as the per capita income increases.

Bangladesh has to ensure the importing countries that the meat exported does not contain any hazardous elements and germs, said Mr Islam, adding "it requires an international testing lab."

The government earlier had a plan to form a high-profile committee to recommend ways to establish a board for certification for halal foods after repeated appeals from processed food exporters and setting up of a testing lab which is yet to see light.

Mr Islam said the most important thing for the growth of this sector is backward linkage and ensuring quality cattle raising to be an internationally approved meat exporting country.

He said developed countries like Australia and New Zealand have turned around their economy by harvesting the huge potential of their dairy farm sector, which also can be a prospective industry for Bangladesh too by having the right attitude towards the sector.

"The economy of Bangladesh is based on agriculture and cattle raising. People now just to learn the process of raising quality cattle and policy to make the sector commercially viable," he added.

Ref: http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/more.php?news_id=139410&date=2011-06-16

Halal or Haram? A new council gives advice to Muslims in Sweden

The newly-formed Swedish Fatwa Council sets out to help Muslims in Sweden seeking advice about how to live in accordance with Islam, but not everyone is convinced the group is necessary, The Local's Karen Holst discovers.


•'God's House' being built in suburban Stockholm (2 Mar 11)
•Swedish Muslim Council renews support for leader (11 Jan 11)
•Swedish fatwa council condemns bomb attack (20 Dec 10)
Is it halal or haram? Right or wrong?

For the more than 450,000 Muslim living in Sweden, or about 5 percent of the total population, it may not always be easy to understand how Islamic practices are best applied in Swedish society.

The group, known as the Swedish Fatwa Council (Svenska Fatwarådet), officially began in mid-2009 with 14 members, composed of educated imams and people with qualified experience in the field.

“The most common questions we receive are related to relationship issues, marriage and divorce, economic issues, private issues of how to live as Muslims in Sweden and arbitration of conflicts,” says Saeed Azam, chairman of the Council.

It is common practice that Muslims seek religious advice regarding how to live in the best, most constructive way where ever they are as well as how to interpret contradictory information.

The word fatwa is commonly defined as a legal pronouncement in Islam that is issued by a religious law specialist on a specific issue.

Fatwas run the spectrum from basic - which foods to eat - to the modern – which music to listen to – to the political – positions on world terrorism. They are adopted to the specific circumstances, environment and time of a certain situation, as fatwas cannot be the same all over the world, in all times due to differing elements.

The decrees also can be refuted or redefined by other Islamic scholars.

For example, in 2001, Egypt's Grand Mufti issued a fatwa stating that the popular television show “Who Will Win the Million?”, modelled after the British show “Who Wants to be a Millionaire?”, was un-Islamic.

The Sheikh of Cairo's Al-Azhar University later rejected the fatwa, finding that there was no objection to such shows since they spread general knowledge.

The most notable fatwa to recently hit the global audience is the 600-page Fatwa on Terrorism, an Islamic decree against terrorism and suicide bombings released last year.

This fatwa was a direct rebuttal of the ideology behind al-Qaeda and Taliban. It is one of the most extensive rulings to date, with an "absolute" condemnation of terrorism without "any excuses or pretexts" and even goes as far as to declare terrorism under Islamic law as kufr, or of a person who does not believe in Allah.

It was produced in Canada by the influential Muslim scholar Dr. Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri and launched in London last March. According to experts, this fatwa is a significant set-back to terrorist recruiting operations.

Dr. Qadri said during the launch, "Terrorism is terrorism, violence is violence and it has no place in Islamic teaching and no justification can be provided for it, or any kind of excuses or ifs or buts."

The Swedish Fatwa Council issued its first fatwa last year in response to the suicide bomb attack in Stockholm, condemning the act and describing it as not compatible with Islam.

Back in Malmö, Azam believes there is a great need in Sweden for the Muslim minority to have such a council to turn to for advice in a context that fits the environment.

“We know what it’s like to live in Sweden and the conditions that people live with here, we understand the challenges,” Azam says.

The Swedish Fatwa Council aims to have a geographical spread of qualified imams throughout the country to increase their reach.

Within the Council they plan to establish the Fatwa Committee, which will consist only of imams who have earned at least a bachelor’s degree in Sharia, or the study of a system of laws derived from the Koran and the Prophet Muhammed’s actions.

Sharia, however, can differ from country to country, and the interpretations of it can range from conservative to liberal.

“It’s been a balancing act to find the right representatives, to avoid extremes,” Azam says.

Today the Committee has nine such educated imams, who reference both the Koran and the Prophet Muhammad’s actions when answering questions about what is and what is not permissible under Sharia Law.

Since fatwas can differ depending upon the school and branch of Islam, the Committee will remain an odd number to ensure a majority vote when providing answers.

Questions are submitted to the Council by letters and e-mails through their website.

The imams plan to lean on authorities abroad when needed, rather than compete with the major fatwa centres of the Middle East and elsewhere in the world, such as the European Fatwa Council.

The Council can then reshape those fatwas in a manner that is applicable to life in Sweden.

However good the intentions though, not all are in favour of the Swedish Fatwa Council.

“They are a little group without the real qualifications to be established here in Sweden,” says a representative from the Grand Mosque in Stockholm.

“There are many other organisations that are properly established in Sweden to provide such counsel. This is not one of them.”

The Grand Mosque, which is run by the Islamic Association, fails to see the need in assigning its own representative to the group.

The Swedish Fatwa Council’s biggest challenges thus are to earn the recognition and respect of the numerous Muslim factions and organizations within Sweden, as well as find representation that matches the nation’s diverse Muslim community.

The Muslim Council of Sweden (Sverige’s Muslimska Råd - SMR) is regarded as the highest Muslim authority in the nation and serves as the influential umbrella organization to most registered Islamic groups in Sweden.

SMR president Helena Benaouda says there's not a real need for the Swedish Fatwa Council or the need to have a fatwa for every little detail of life.

She adds that while it's good for imams or groups of imams and educated individuals to think about how to best implement Islamic practices in Sweden, Benaouda warns against opinions and guidance coming from too narrow a field.

"We welcome all efforts to explain Islam in a European context but this group is still too little - they need to be much bigger and much broader," Benaouda says, adding that educated female representation also is important, which the group in Malmö currently lacks.

The diverse Muslim community in Sweden includes large numbers of believers who originate from countries outside the Middle East such as Bosnia and Somalia. As of yet these groups do not have representation in the Council either.

Despite views from those who are sceptical about the Fatwa Council and its ability to represent Sweden's diverse Muslim population, Azam is nevertheless optimistic about the Council's potential to serve as an important resource for Muslims in Sweden.

"We believe we have the specialist knowledge needed, since the imams in our Council have the proper religious education," he says.

"We want other Muslim minorities to be included in the Council in the future."

Courtesy by: The Local

Plan for Halal food a step forward

Washington University Dining Services is currently planning to implement a Halal foods program. If implemented, Halal options will first be offered in the Village and Bear’s Den, with plans to expand the options across campus later.
The University’s introduction of Halal foods should be seen as a major step forward in providing dining options for those on a restricted diet of any kind, whether for religious, cultural or health reasons. Wash. U. currently offers vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and kosher offerings, among others, and in this respect it is a commendable food service provider for those with special dietary needs. Between 70 and 100 people have requested halal foods, and this population cannot go unnoticed. With so many options available for kosher dining, we believe that introducing Halal options on-campus is long overdue.
It is understandable that the University has not offered Halal foods up until now. The group of people who currently benefit from kosher foods is few in number, and there are additional costs associated with implementing Halal Foods, just as there are with kosher foods. Specifically, Dining Services would have to find a new, Halal-certified source of meat, which could be costly. Still, Dining Services does not anticipate a major increase in cost, and while the number of students that would benefit from Halal Foods is small, the University is acting properly in accommodating their needs.
On a progressive campus such as that of Wash. U., it is important that we extend our notions of tolerance and acceptance to all aspects of one’s lifestyle. For example, to be a vegetarian is not just to avoid eating meat, but to embrace a conscious lifestyle that takes into account ethical questions and demands. While we may not all agree with vegetarianism, we still support the right to be vegetarian for those who choose to do so, and the University provides them with dining options to facilitate these choices.
More often than not, however, we forget that religious restrictions on dining constitute just as much of a conscious lifestyle, and observing religious customs on dining is part of a larger way of living and thinking. As students, we should respect the decisions of others to engage in any kind of decision involving food, and part of this respect involves ensuring that such options are available for those who choose to observe Halal regulations.
Ultimately, the University and Bon Appétit should be praised for the expected new Halal options. Accommodating the needs of observant Muslim students only increases our level of awareness of differing lifestyles on campus, and while the number of people requesting Halal is comparatively small, the University ought to do so on principle alone. After all, Wash. U. prides itself on being a welcoming community.

Courtesy By: Student Life

Can Religious Liberty Become "Halal"?

The groundswell that began in Tunisia has ousted Hosni Mubarak in Egypt, and is spreading across the Middle East. This moment may well represent a historic turning point for the Muslim world . . . or it may not. The choice is up to new leaders of the Middle East, who will (hopefully) continue to topple authoritarian governments, or at least extract substantial reforms. Now is the time for the Muslim world to rise up—but not just for democracy. As we have seen in China, "democracy" is a sham without real religious liberty. Islam's detractors say that Muslims are incapable of embracing religious liberty, because Islam is an inherently coercive faith. Let us hope that events will prove that assumption untrue.
Those who see Islam as a uniquely oppressive religion fail to note that there was a time when Christians brutally suppressed religious dissent, too. Christians began as persecuted sectarians who hoped only to win the freedom to worship. They got their wish when Constantine issued the Edict of Milan in 313. But that development set the stage for Christianity to become the state religion of the Roman Empire, and later, for the Catholic powers of medieval Europe. The Catholic Inquisitions were an extreme version of the suppression of religious dissent, and the wars of the Reformation led both Protestants and Catholics to stifle unorthodox sects.
The Puritans of New England, too, outlawed dissenting religious groups such as Baptists, Quakers, and Anglicans. They saw it as a religious duty to expel dissenters such as Anne Hutchinson and Roger Williams, and in the most tragic case, they hung three recalcitrant Quakers in the years 1659-1661. Freedom of religion, to the early Puritans, meant freedom to leave New England if you did not agree with them.

America's pattern of religious persecution only gradually abated during the 18th century. Until the eve of the American Revolution, state-sanctioned maltreatment of dissenting Christians continued. A number of Baptists were put in jail for illegal preaching in Virginia as late as the 1770s, a development that leaders such as Patrick Henry and James Madison watched with disgust. Their revulsion shaped the 1776 Virginia Declaration of Rights, which affirmed not just "toleration" of dissenters, but the "free exercise of religion." Baptists continued to insist, however, that real religious liberty meant not only stopping the abuse of dissenters, but abolishing official state denominations. This was the triumph of the First Amendment's ban on an "establishment of religion": the United States, unlike England, would not have a national church.
Most Muslim-dominated countries have failed to make the transition to full religious liberty. The reasons why are historically complex. In the early modern period many Muslim countries actually afforded greater protections to religious minorities than Christian countries did (evangelism among Muslims was always problematic, though). But today, Muslim-dominated countries often smother religious dissent and allow minority Muslim and Christian sects to be viciously persecuted. Those who would turn from Islam to other faiths commonly face flagrant harassment or even execution.
Some Muslim leaders have, of course, gone on record favoring religious liberty, but with the sea change happening now in the Muslim world, there has never been a better chance to apply the freedom principle. If fundamentalist Muslims hijack these uprisings and suppress adherents of different beliefs (such as happened in the aftermath of the Iranian Revolution), it will be a great tragedy. But if moderate Muslims do not insist upon religious liberty as an essential part of any new democratic order, it will be perceived as an indictment of Islam itself.
I can hear Islam's critics now: "Have you ever read the Quran? Muslims cannot honestly support religious liberty." Remember, Christians have their coercive, violent passages, too. (Ever read the book of Joshua?) Sacred verses commanding the destruction of enemies have always required interpretation. During the 18th and 19th centuries, Christians became almost universally convinced that the Old Testament commands to destroy the Canaanites did not represent a mandate for all time, but only for ancient Israel.
I pray that the Muslim world will condemn violent jihadism and the persecution of religious minorities and converts. As a recent New York Times editorial put it, democracy is now becoming halal (or permissible under Islamic law). Hopefully religious liberty will become halal, too.

Courtesy by: Path Eos

Halal market valued at $1.2 trillion

More than 1.8 billion consumers worldwide purchase halal products according to the International Halal Integrity Alliance with the halal food market forecast to grow by more than 20% over the next decade.
Taking place from February 27 to March 2 at the Dubai International Convention and Conference Centre, Gulfood 2011 hosts companies from more than 100 countries around the world, and is ideally positioned at the epicentre of a burgeoning international import and export halal market.
“Gulfood plays a pivotal role in the industry by both showcasing products and fostering growth in the regional markets. In terms of the halal food and beverage category specifically, this is demonstrated by the wide range of international companies participating at Gulfood, and the increasing number of local and regional companies specialising in the halal market who attend to broaden their markets beyond the GCC,” said Helal Almarri, CEO, Dubai World Trade Centre, organiser of Gulfood.
“Halal is an increasingly important pillar of the trade, and Gulfood is perfectly positioned both geographically and economically as a trading hub to support and facilitate continued growth for local, regional and international businesses in the halal segment,” he added.
The focus on halal products at Gulfood extends from almost every corner of the world, with beef, poultry, dairy, raw ingredients and flavourings, baby foods and processed foods just some of product lines on show. Country pavilions including Australia, Brazil, Canada, Egypt, New Zealand, and the US all have exceptionally strong halal product representation.

Khazan Foods, one of the Middle East’s top producers of premium chilled and frozen meat products and quality food in the FMCG market, and the platinum sponsor for this year’s Gulfood exhibition, will be unveiling their latest halal product range aimed at the health conscious consumer. Called Light & Vital, the premium beef, turkey and chicken products are low fat, and free of lactose, MSG, soya and gluten.
“We have chosen Gulfood to launch our latest range because the reach of this exhibition enables us to keep our customers updated on our product offerings, rev up our sales and increase our market share, all at the same time,” said Frank Andreu, General Manager of Khazan.

Included in the 300-plus halal exhibitors at Gulfood this year, are: Al Accad Department Stores, Al Islami Foods, Americana Meat, Brazil Food, Herfy Food Service Co., Matrade, Nestle, Rembrandt Foods Inc., Sadia International, The Halal Catering Argentina and Volys Star.

Courtesy by: Hotelier Meddle East

Halal burgers and hotdogs now available at Union Market

Two halal meat options, a burger or hotdog, are now being offered at the Union Market as of Jan. 28.
"Our goal is to make (halal food) available as much as possible," said Zia Ahmed, senior director of Campus Dining Services at Ohio State.
Halal meat is meat that Muslims are permitted to eat according to Islamic dietary guidelines and the Quran. "Halal" means "lawful" in Arabic. The meat, which can never be pork, must be slaughtered in a certain way and in the name of Allah.
Some Muslim students at OSU opted out of eating meat on campus because of the lack of any certified halal meat through dining services.
"As a freshman with a meal plan, I could not eat meat. I had no choice but to eat a vegetarian diet. Many Muslim freshmen, limited to meal plans, do not eat meat on campus," said Maria Ahmad, president of OSU's Muslim Students' Association and a third-year in speech and hearing sciences.
Students unable to eat meat on campus were the main inspiration behind Ahmad's campaign platform in Spring 2010 to bring halal foods to OSU.
Ahmad caught wind of Food Service Express' media outreach via webinars and speeches at conferences that advised students on ways to approach campus administrators about providing halal options.
Don Tymchuck, president of HalalHealthy.com and Med-Diet, a parent company of Food Service Express, spoke at the Muslim Students' Association Conference on Jan. 30 at the Ohio Union.
"Students must create the demand. Campus Dining Services will not provide alternative dining options unless that demand is expressed," Tymchuck said. "It is my goal to prime the pump by guiding students."
After reading a packet on Tymchuck's steps for addressing campus administration, Ahmad contacted Ahmed in Autumn 2010.
"I came from the University of Akron four months ago and my goal is to refocus commitment to student feedback, to address all backgrounds: religious, cultural, and even dietetic needs," Ahmed said. "We've met with students from the USG, BSA (Black Student Association) and graduate societies."
Campus Dining Services is not just waiting for requests; it is also focusing on reaching out to students.
"We are reaching out and soliciting information. But we would never arbitrarily place a product out there … it would not make sense to introduce a product no one wants," Ahmed said.
Tymchuck said there is a niche for halal.

"Halal has a market. Nearly half of the colleges we surveyed had 100 or more Muslim students; however, only 6 percent had halal meal plans," Tymchuck said.
Ahmad said it took three meetings with the Undergraduate Student Government's Diversity Committee supporting the Muslim Students' Association and one meeting with the Muslim Students' Association representing itself to convince Dining Services that halal should be offered.
Ahmed said Campus Dining Services took its time sorting out the logistics of offering halal. Ahmad said it is difficult to provide food that meets religious guidelines. It took two weeks for dining services to get halal meat on the Union Market grill.
"It is important to do something the right way. You can imagine how terrible it would be if we called something halal or kosher and it was discovered not to be," she said.
Food supplier Restaurant Depot now provides meat that is halal-certified to Campus Dining Services. The issues of contaminating halal were also addressed. Halal meat ceases to be halal if contaminated by haram foods — "haram" means "forbidden" in Arabic.
Ahmed said measures were taken to educate chefs about halal and that one side of the grill is used specially to cook halal burgers or halal hot dogs.
"The University will probably see if students respond well to halal. They should; it's a big deal," said Ahmad. "Students want dining to be a home away from home." 

Courtesy by: The Lentern