According to the Islam faith, Muslims are commanded by Allah in the Qur’an to eat only pure, wholesome and permissible food that is fit for human consumption. By labelling a food product Halal, which translated literally means permissible, a commitment has been made to adhere to such dietary laws.

Although many are quite basic in their nature, for instance pork, alcohol and blood are forbidden; others follow stringent religious procedures, for example an animal must be slaughtered using a certain technique and in the name of Allah.

Countries such as Indonesia, Singapore and in particular Malaysia are well positioned to capitalise on the potentially lucrative Halal market with government bodies helping to promote the industry through defined guidelines.

However, as of yet no standardised global Halal guidelines have emerged from the sector and areas of uncertainty remain. No more so, than for food processors based outside of the traditional Halal food-producing territories, where food products are certified only by small Islamic societies or non-governmental organisations.

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In May of 2009, a group of independent Halal advocates visited the Cargill / Better Beef plant in Canada. Shaykh Abdullah Nana of California, Shaykh Hussain Kamani of Chicago, and Adnan Faiz of Chicago met with the national supplier’s management and operations personnel. The Cargill / Better Beef team was extremely cooperative throughout the course of the plant visit. This level of transparency and professionalism reflected positively on Cargill / Better Beef’s willingness to work with a large base of Halal advocates in addressing any issues being expressed from the consumer’s end.

The management staff took the group of independent Halal advocates on a tour of their large beef slaughtering facility. Nearly fifteen hundred cattle are slaughtered at this facility each day by Muslim slaughter men who recite the name of Allah (tasmiyya) at every slaughter.

[Note: Due to confidentiality purposes, we are unable to discuss distribution, packaging, or any other processing methods being used at Cargill / Better Beef]

In coming to the key purpose of the trip, the group of independent Halal advocates was allowed to observe the actual method of slaughter used on the animal by the Muslim slaughter men. Along with the tasmiyya, the slaughtering method seen was the “European or Vertical” cut wherein a vertical incision is made from the throat to the edge of the chest cavity in order to kill the animal and allow blood to flow.

As expert Halal slaughter research and practical observation has always confirmed, the “European or Vertical” cut does not ensure the required Islamic slaughter has taken place in Islam. The animal must be slaughtered from the front of the neck and horizontally across as this is the only means of complete assuredness of the required jugular veins and passages being cut of such an animal. These include the throat, windpipe, and the two [thin] jugular veins in the neck. Without the horizontal method of cutting, there is no guarantee of the necessary passages and veins being cut, deeming the animal questionable or doubtful for consumption. Muslim jurists around the world are also unanimous on not using such a method of slaughter when killing an animal. Based on the above, the team of independent Halal advocates has also arrived at the same conclusion that the slaughter process at Cargill / Better Beef does not meet the Islamic requirements of slaughter at the present time.

The Cargill / Better Beef management and operations personnel have given their affirmation in understanding fully their present situation and with regards to the method of slaughter. They are currently in the process of reassessing their slaughter procedures with the possibility of implementing the correct Halal slaughter method and while making sure their safety standards will not be compromised.

The group of independent Halal advocates mentioned above, in doing their part to support and strengthen the alliance of advocate-to-supplier relations, has recommended Cargill / Better Beef with various pathways of improvement. This included having provided Halal expert analysis and advice while at the facility, having forwarded quality Halal literature and referential works outlining the right way of slaughter, and giving them the option of attending shadowing sessions with other large slaughter plants who have implemented the correct method of Halal slaughter safely and successfully. Cargill / Better Beef has ensured the Halal advocacy team of regular updates throughout the course of this journey and in becoming an acceptable Halal supplier if they so choose to take this path. The group of Halal advocates has also expressed their strong show of support in helping the respectable supplier in all ways possible.

Briefly, the group of independent Halal advocates, spanning from the Pacific Northwest, Pacific Southwest, Midwest, and East Coast is committed to one concern: to provide assurance to the national consumer on the integrity of Halal while also establishing transparent alliances or relationships with our esteemed Halal suppliers and businesses in America. We are focused on balancing our Halal advocacy between these two important alliances. To date, our group of Halal advocates has travelled thousands of miles and over thirteen states to observe numerous slaughtering plants, processing and distribution centers, and businesses outlets in establishing a standard of Halal integrity. As an example, the group’s most recent alliance success was the major global Halal supplier and distributor, Midamar Corporation. The independent Halal advocate base has no financial motive other than to establish universal Halal Integrity and authentic Halal products and, in so doing, secure the future of our Halal businesses, communities, and children.

Two independent halal advocates, Abdullah Nana of California and Saad Baig of Chicago, visited the Midamar Corporation in Iowa from January 22-Jan.29, 2009. During this trip, the halal advocates visited four slaughtering facilities in the Midwest as well as a processing plant. They also met with the Islamic Services of America (I.S.A) who certifies the Midamar products and oversees the slaughter process. The employees at both Midamar and I.S.A. were extremely cooperative and helpful. Midamar and I.S.A implemented the suggestions made by both halal advocates and provided them with detailed information needed to evaluate the halal process at Midamar.

After months of detailed research and coordination with the Midamar and I.S.A staff, the two halal advocates have prepared a list of approved Midamar meat products. At the same time, they are still doing research regarding the other meat products and they plan to visit more Midamar plants in the future. Midamar currently employs the mechanical slaughter method for some of its chicken and turkey products. The company has informed the advocates that they plan to start implementing the hand-slaughter method for these products in the near future.  The Muslim community will be updated of any new developments.

The beef and turkey products on this approved list are slaughtered by a Sunni Muslim using his hands while reciting the name of Allah. There is no pre-slaughter stunning at the Midamar beef plants. I.S.A. has appointed supervisors after the slaughter to oversee the processing, deboning, and packaging of the meat in order to ensure that there is complete separation between halal beef and non-halal beef. In the same way, Midamar uses a turkey plant which is devoted exclusively to halal products and the slaughter is carried by a Muslim who cuts the throat of the animal by hand while reciting the name of Allah.

The fresh meat is further processed into patties, burgers, sausages, etc. at various processing plants. The advocates are currently doing research regarding these processing plants. They have also visited a Midamar processing plant which is devoted exclusively to halal products and they are currently approving those products which are processed at this particular plant. The products processed at the plant will have the following code on the label: USDA Est # 5579. The halal advocates have also looked into the status of the halal collagen casings used in some of the Midamar products and have verified that they are from halal beef sources slaughtered at Midamar plants. The following is a current list of these approved products:

Beef

All Fresh Beef Products

Ground Beef

Beef Bratwurst

Breakfast Sausage Patties

Seekh Kabab

Breakfast Sausage Links

Italian Rope Sausage

Beef Patties

Beef Burgers

Beef Round Roast

Beef stew meat

Beef B&B patties

Steaks

Beef Top Sirloin

Beef Tenderloin

Ribeye Steak

T-Bone Steak

New York Strip

Porterhouse

Turkey

Midamar Whole Turkeys (Establishment number P7669)

Please note that this approval is for the above-mentioned products which were produced after Feb. 15, 2009 after the visit to the Midamar plant. Therefore, the two halal advocates would advise consumers to check the package for the production date to ensure that these products were processed after this date. For assistance with this task, please contact Midamar representatives at 1800-362-3711 or info@midamar.com. One would be advised to order directly from the company headquarters as all the current meat products there have been processed after Feb. 15, 2009.

For the sake of brevity, the halal advocates have presented a summary of their findings in this letter and not gone into detail. They have not included many articles, reports, and other relevant documents from their research. For more information or for questions, please contact Mufti Abdullah Nana at muftiabdullah@gmail.com or at the following cell phone number: (415)342-9481.

Abdullah Nana
www.halalcentral.wordpress.com

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In the days before major Islamic holidays, there is an unusual sight in Ozone Park, an outlying corner of New York. A long line of people wait beside a pen holding several hundred goats and lambs between low buildings.

One after another, customers choose an animal, which is weighed and then slaughtered according to Islamic dietary law: A butcher utters a few words in praise of Allah before cutting the animal’s throat.

This is Madani Halal, a thriving family business founded in 1996 by an immigrant from Bangladesh and taken over in 2003 by his American-born son. In part due to continuing growth in the immigrant population in the United States, the business is expanding and is about to begin a wholesale poultry operation after a $2 million investment.

Riaz Uddin, 73, has been in America since he arrived in Boston in 1956. He worked as a dishwasher and then a cook in a kosher restaurant. He married a Catholic woman from Puerto Rico and opened two bars in New York. It was a classic American success story, but he wasn’t happy.

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“I can get Indo-Pakistani food at home,” says Nguyen, 36, who grew up in Natick on the Indian cooking of his mother. Today he enjoys the Pakistani cuisine his wife prepares. But he’s seldom been able to indulge in the foods his non-Muslim friends ate, like burgers, burritos, and chicken tenders because the meat wasn’t zabihah — slaughtered according to Islamic rites — and thus wasn’t halal. “Grain and Salt enabled me to eat Buffalo wings, which I always craved for but I couldn’t have.”

Halal restaurants and groceries catering to devout Muslims are proliferating across America, and Boston is no exception. On zabihah.com, sort of a Muslim Zagat’s, where diners can rate halal restaurants, there are more than 19,000 reviews for more than 5,000 restaurants and grocers, including 72 in and around Boston. But zabihah meat is no longer just for curries and kebabs or other dishes common in the Islamic world. As more Muslims are born in or come to the United States at an early age and experience what other American palates experience, zabihah meat is landing in everything from tacos and teriyaki to Philly cheese-steaks and chicken chow mein.

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The Kosher Market
The category has come a long way since Rabbi Dov Behr Manischewitz began baking matzos in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1888. According to market researcher Mintel International, the kosher food industry is a $12.5 billion business in the U.S. There are 110,000 certified-kosher products on American grocery shelves, with more than 2,000 added each year. Sales of kosher foods have increased by 10 to 15 percent annually for the last eight years—only organic foods have exceeded those growth numbers in some years.

The focus in the kosher market used to be on which of the multinational corporations such as Coca-Cola and Frito-Lay were going to become kosher certified. Now the spotlight is on the specialty food world where there is an explosion of new and exciting products aimed to broaden the traditional sacred-foods consumer’s culinary experience while enticing a wide range of other buyers. “There are so many choices today,” says Gold. “I am bombarded by salesmen with new specialty food products in every category—baked goods, imports, condiments and prepared foods—but this is a good problem.”

Perhaps more dramatic than the growth stats, however, is the qualitative way in which kosher food has changed. One major influence on the image makeover is Chef Jeff Nathan, chef/owner of the kosher restaurant, Abigael’s, in midtown Manhattan and cooking show host. While he concedes it’s an uphill battle—many still equate kosher with brisket and deli sandwiches—public perception has come a long way since he took over the restaurant 17 years ago.

“The traditional kosher consumer is becoming a foodie along with the rest of the country,” says Nathan. And he is able to satiate customers increasingly curious palates largely thanks to a plethora of new kosher specialty ingredients. “We have sushi, ginger, wasabi—things that were unheard of years ago,” he shares. “I think of our restaurant as a great American restaurant that just happens to be kosher.”

The rules haven’t changed: In addition to forbidding pork and certain types of fish (shellfish, swordfish and eel), the kosher dietary laws prohibit any cut of beef from the hindquarter of the cow (filet mignon, for example) and requires all the blood to be drained from the animal immediately after slaughter. “I can’t use any of the tender parts of the meat, but I can use the rib eye, which I find the most flavorful part anyway,” Nathan says. And he gets around the no-mixing-meat-and-dairy rule by looking to southern Italy, where the cuisine rarely uses cream or butter. “I incorporate a lot of ingredients that don’t need to be kosher like olive oil and fresh herbs,” he notes.

Halal Foods: A Category Ripe with Opportunity

One of the surprising statistics about kosher food sales is that, according to Mintel, about 16 percent of sales are to Muslims due to the lack of availability of halal-certified foods. (Many of the laws governing halal food production—particularly meat—are strikingly similar to kosher food.) “If Muslims don’t have access to halal products, they look to kosher because it is the closest option. But in the last ten years, halal foods have become much more readily available,” says Jalel Aossey, director at Midamar Corporation of Iowa. Midamar, founded by Aossey’s father in 1974, helped create the halal market in the U.S., and remains the leader in halal retail and food services.

The global halal market is a $580 billion industry and American manufacturers, importers, restaurateurs, caterers and retailers are starting to pay attention: The U.S. halal market grew more than 20 percent last year. “The eight million Muslims living in the U.S. today have created the single greatest demand for halal food in a Western society outside of France,” says Aossey. Islamic Services of America, a halal certification agency, estimates that halal foods will continue to grow at a rate of 25 to 30 percent over the next five to seven years.

Halal offerings are broadening far beyond traditional meats into a wider array of products, as well as into more mainstream retail outlets. Many McDonalds—including two in Michigan—sell halal burgers and chicken nuggets, Subway provides halal products in 62 restaurants worldwide including two in New Jersey and Nestlé sold $3.5 billion worth of halal products last year. The Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America in Park Ridge, Ill., certified 1,000 companies last year, up from 330 companies in 2002. “I think of halal as the little brother to kosher, following many of the same growth trends,” says Aossey. “But if you look where it is headed in the next 20 years, it is on pace to surpass kosher.”

Who’s Buying? Understanding the Sacred Foods Consumer
It would be hard not to consume kosher products in our country, since so many everyday staples from Cheerios® to Häagen-Dazs® ice creams bear a kosher certification symbol. Just over 20 percent of American consumers, however, are actively seeking out the kosher label (according to Mintel) and considering there are only 6 million Jews in the U.S. (only 1.25 million of whom keep kosher year round), the market goes well beyond this religious group.

Over half of those buying kosher are doing so for health or safety reasons. Kosher suppliers have long been actively marketing these foods as cleaner and more regulated than non-kosher foods, creating a widespread perception that kosher guarantees quality and hygiene. “The very fact that government standards don’t work for us—our standards are higher—draws people,” says Gold of Pomegranate’s clientele. “I have customers coming from a 50-mile radius to shop here, many of whom are not Jewish.”

The growing distrust of government regulatory agencies by consumers has only fueled this surge, says David Levine, president of Pittsburgh, Pa.’s NuGo Nutrition, an all-kosher line of protein bars and snacks. “Because of the lack of oversight or competency today by many federal agencies, the kosher seal is becoming a seal of approval for the entire food industry. There is a strong connection in principal between the organic and kosher certification since both require sourcing, cleaning, auditing and reporting procedures to be followed and maintained,” Levine points out.

Halal is earning a similar reputation amongst some consumers. “People are more concerned with what is in the food they eat, and things like Mad Cow outbreaks have driven non-Muslims to purchase halal meats,” Aossey says. “Like kosher, halal benefits from this as people are willing to pay more for our meat, and perhaps just eat it less often.”

Food intolerance groups are also a key market, since ingredient verification in kosher-certified foods is strictly monitored. “Everything that is kosher is rigorously overseen, people can rely on it,” says Levana Kirschenbaum, a pioneer in gourmet kosher cuisine and a cookbook author.

Vegetarians and vegans have entered the kosher fold for this reason as well: Due to the central tenet of kosher dietary law that meat and dairy not be combined, when the label says dairy- or meat-free, it absolutely is.

Kosher.com, an online kosher retailer, reports that half of its customers are shopping for dietary reasons like lactose or gluten intolerance or other food allergies, particularly around Passover when additional ingredients such as corn and certain bread products are forbidden in the kosher diet. Even some Coca-Cola bottlers release a limited batch of the old-fashioned formulation during Passover—made with cane sugar, not corn syrup—and those with corn allergies (and those who simply prefer the taste) stock up.

Regardless of why they are seeking out kosher, what these consumers have in common is a willingness to spend. A Cannondale Associates study found that kosher consumers are not influenced by deep discounts and spend about 47 percent more on food per year than other consumers. The same is true of the halal buyer, says Aossey: “Mainstream retailers are realizing that the average halal consumer will also purchase additional groceries and supplies from stores carrying halal products. They may buy $30 of meat products and then spend $70 on other items.”

The Evolving Traditional Consumer
There is a changing Jewish consumer who is more demanding, more curious and on the hunt for new products. Results from a recent study from Cannondale Associates shows that the kosher consumer is looking for a broader selection of food categories. Pomegranate’s primarily Orthodox consumers are more traveled and watch cooking shows regularly, reports Gold: “They are more sophisticated and there have been a plethora of adventurous kosher cookbooks published in the last decade. They still want their traditional foods, but they want much more than that as well.” And while Abigael’s Nathan believes that some older kosher consumers might be hesitant—”Raw fish?!! Rare steaks?!!”—they are being led by the younger generations to try new flavors: “You couldn’t go to a bar mitzvah today without seeing sushi,” he notes.

The halal market is also being diversified to meet the demands of younger Muslims, says Aossey. “I eat traditional Middle Eastern food one day, but the next I eat Thai or Vietnamese, just like any other American. My generation wants this variety. Midamar’s new products are all non-traditional food offerings, such as spaghetti and meatballs, pizza and barbecue beef ribs.”

“I trace it to the growing number of Jews returning to the kosher lifestyle—a phenomenon known as ‘ba’al teshuva,’” says Kirschenbaum. “Many Jews abandoned the kosher diet after World War II. Now they want to keep a kosher home, but they are familiar with all things secular, and they crave all the same culinary pleasures they had grown accustomed to.”

There is a similar movement within the Muslim world, as many Muslims are returning to a more religious way of life, describes Aossey. Munir Darwish was certainly not the first halal store to set up shop in Syracuse when he opened Madina Halal Meat & Grocery two years ago to cater to the region’s significant Muslim population. “There has been a resurgence of Muslims wanting to keep a halal home,” he describes, which creates greater demand for more stores like his.

Trends and New Products

The categories that are fueling growth for both kosher and halal have come not from traditional foods, but from mainstream food segments—cookies, chocolate confectionery, snacks, sugar confectionery and crackers—and tend to fall in the premium sector.

“The strongest trends presented at Kosherfest 2008 were the presence of more products that are gourmet, exotic and/or healthy,” says Menachem Lubinsky, Kosherfest show founder. “There was a variety of exotic meats such as elk and bison, a growing selection of kosher wines and a great number of gluten-free foods.” In its 20th year, Kosherfest 2008 showcased products from 28 countries, including Israel, England, Argentina, Canada and Serbia. Packaging upgrades and innovations were another trend of note—down-playing their kosher-ness, products have taken a decidedly upscale turn, an indication that kosher suppliers intend to compete against all other specialty foods.

The move towards healthier offerings is a big growth driver as well, and sugar-free, gluten-free, low-fat and all-natural have become the buzzwords in the kosher market. Kirschenbaum recently debuted her line of all-natural dairy-free spelt products aimed at the general market, particularly those who are sensitive to gluten.

“There is a tremendous need in the kosher community for healthier snacks and there have been so few options so far,” says NuGo’s Levine. NuGo has a line of kosher parve (parve products contain no meat or dairy) and kosher dairy snacks, which
are all high protein and low fat products.

Marketing to the health conscious makes sense, says Nora Schultz, president of Naturally Nora, Inc., Princeton, N.J., a line of all-natural cake and frosting mixes. “Along with monikers like ‘organic,’ and ‘all-natural,’ kosher wears a ‘better-for-you’ halo in the consumer’s eye. The trend towards organic and natural in the kosher world is a natural progression.”

The list of companies going after the kosher certification is growing, too. Just how much of a leg-up does a kosher symbol give a product? A lot, says Jennifer Moore of Dancing Deer, the Boston-based maker of cookies, brownies and cakes. It took the company nine months to achieve kosher certification in 2002, but the effort was well worth it. “From a marketing perspective, it is extremely beneficial to us,” says Moore. “When we became kosher, there were not a lot of gourmet natural kosher options out there in our category, so we definitely received increased visibility.” The company recently moved into a new facility, which is entirely kosher as well.

In spite of the vast array of high-end and ethnic products Gold has to choose from when purchasing for Pomegranate, the newest kosher offering he is most excited about is Jelly Belly. “The Jelly Belly salesman told me that their numbers immediately went through the roof,” Gold says. “When I asked my contact there the most difficult thing about going kosher, he said it was
getting rid of the old
packaging.” |SFM|

Kristen Wolfe Bieler is a contributor to Beverage Media, City and Food & Wine.

Jalel Aossey, director of Midamar, a US-based international supplier of halal food and foodservice equipment, said that there is a significant flow of non-halal food items in the region from meat-supplying countries, and the Gulf countries need tougher regulations to stop that flow.

“On one side you have producers who genuinely don’t know what they have to comply with because of a lack of education from the industry. But you also have companies and exporters that are deliberately defrauding governments and consumers by not complying with regulations because they don’t want to pay the fees and the transition costs to make halal products,” Aossey said.

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“If the U.S. continues to promote U.S. beef in the Middle East and continues to turn a blind eye to the method of the blessing and (continues) doing it incorrectly, the Middle East could stop buying,” said Sam Rayes, co-founder of Tex-Med Beef Co., a Houston firm offering Halal-certified meats in mainstream supermarkets.

According to Rayes’ estimates, more than 50% of U.S. beef exports to Islamic countries are affected by inadequate procedures.   The questions about the procedures come at a time when the U.S. meat market is trying actively to build more market share in the region.

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Products being negotiated for potential import into the Kingdom and the GCC region include snacks, vegetable oils, dairy products, health foods, fruit juices and meat products stamped with the halal signature.

However, many international companies — in accordance with plans for global expansion and to stay financially afloat in the current financial crisis — are using the halal industry to get an edge on their competitors without using or even being correctly educated on methods of Islamic slaughter.

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