Certification
MALAYSIA: Fatimah - Assurance of Halal status for all Sarawak Best products
Consumers can rest assured that products with the Sarawak Best certificate, including layered-cakes, are Halal. Minister in the Chief Minister’s Department Datin Fatimah Ab-dullah said that one of the criteria for Sarawak Best certification is the use of Halal ingredients. “In fact, our criteria are quite similar to the Islamic Development Department’s (Jakim) requirements for Halal certification. It’s a very stringent process to be certified as Sarawak Best and we make sure that Halal ingredients are used,” she told a press conference at her office yesterday. Fatimah was quelling concerns about the status of Sarawak layered-cakes following the declaration of Golden Churn Creamery butter as non-Halal.
MALAYSIA: 'Kek Lapis Sarawak' Entrepreneurs in Quandary over 'Kek Babi' Label
Entrepreneurs engaged in one of Sarawak's most popular tourism products, 'kek lapis' are in a quandary over its, 'kek babi' labeling by some quarters. "The label is adversely affecting our business," lamented Rabiah Amit, president of the Sarawak Kek Lapis Entrepreneurs Association. The layered cake had been associated with the 'Golden Churn Creamy Butter', a dairy food ingredient that was declared by the Sarawak Islamic Religious Department as a forbidden item for Muslims because it contained pig DNA. Rabiah claimed association members are taking the brunt, citing a supplier in Selangor who she said was led to tears after being issued with a threat by a consumer yesterday that if she continued to sell kek lapis to Muslims, she would be jailed.
AUSTRALIA: Meatworks reopening delayed again
The owner of the Young abattoir has put the opening back again, this time until next year. About 300 people lost their jobs when Young's biggest employer collapsed last year under former owner Grant Edmonds. The abattoir had been due to reopen in April this year, then June, then October. The managing director of the BE Campbell Group, Ted Campbell, says he has delayed reopening until next year for more design work, because the abattoir will not be processing pigs, after the rejection of halal certification. He says the financial outlook is not driving the decision making.
SINGAPORE: Marina Mandarin Singapore gets upgraded to a Crescentrating 5 after receiving Halal Certification from MUIS
The Marina Mandarin Singapore Hotel has been upgraded to a Crescentrating of 5 considering the recent Halal certification of all the food stations including the central kitchen at their renowned restaurant, AquaMarine. The Marina Mandarin Hotel, a 5-star luxury hotel located in the heart of the Marina Bay area, has recently received Halal certification for all the food stations including the central kitchen of AquaMarine from the Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura (MUIS). “We are extremely proud to be the first hotel in the Marina Bay/Suntec areas to have a Halal-certified restaurant. We recognized the importance of providing services and facilities that meet the needs of our Muslim and Halal-conscious guests. Being presented with the Halal certification, along with the Crescentrating of 5, these have reaffirmed our commitment to continue to do so” said Mr. Kurt O. Wehinger, General Manager, Marina Mandarin Singapore.
MALAYSIA: Golden Churn butter confirmed to contain pig DNA, says Daud
The Halal certification logo on the Golden Churn Creamery Butter product will be withdrawn now that it has been confirmed to be non-Halal. Assistant Minister in the Chief Minister’s Department (Islamic Affairs) Datuk Daud Abdul Rahman said the Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Ministry would be asked to enforce the withdrawal of the logo. “The confusion over the matter is now resolved with the decision made by the Islamic Development Department (Jakim) in a meeting on Tuesday that the butter is not Halal. The decision is applicable throughout the country and Muslims are not allowed to consume the butter,” he told reporters after a Zakat presentation ceremony at Tabung Baitulmal Sarawak here in Kuching.
MALAYSIA: Jakim must carry out thorough tests before rejecting applications - Chua
Halal food producers here have complained of high-handed tactics by the Islamic Development Malaysia Department (Jakim) in the issuance of Halal certificates. MCA president Datuk Seri Dr Chua Soi Lek said producers of coffee, chicken burgers, Taiwan sausages, milk powder, BBQ sauce, chicken wings and otak-otak complained that Jakim had refused to issue them Halal certificates after traces of pigs and dogs were detected in their products. He said once the tests by Jakim showed that a certain product was contaminated, the producer “is finished” because no second test would be carried out to confirm the first test results.
INDIA: Olive Lifesciences Facility Certified Halal
Olive Lifesciences Pvt. Ltd. received Halal certification for its manufacturing plant, showing the facility meets strict Islamic guidelines dealing with hygiene, dietary regulation, raw material processing and ingredient packaging. “Demand from manufacturers for Halal certified ingredients is growing, and we see Halal as a form of approval that boosts our customers’ trust and confidence in our range of botanical extracts" said Anzar, managing director for Olive Lifesciences. In May of this year, Olive Lifesciences also received kosher certification from Star-K for all its botanical extracts.
MALAYSIA: Hotels Asked To Obtain Halal Certification
Hotel operators which have yet to obtain Halal certificates from the Islamic Development Department of Malaysia (Jakim) have been urged to get their certifications to ensure that the food and drinks they served during Ramadan is Halal. Jakim director-general Othman Mustapha said the department had simplified the certification process and it can now be obtained within a day.
NETHERLANDS: Netherlands to Ban Ritual Slaughter without Stunning
Dutch politicians have passed a bill banning the slaughter of livestock without stunning it first. The law will not completely outlaw Halal slaughter, as an alleged 80 per cent of Halal killings are already made with pre-stunning, but it will outlaw kosher slaughter, which never involves stunning. The lower house of the Dutch parliament voted for the ban by a majority of 116 to 30, but it must be passed by the upper house before becoming law, which is unlikely to happen before the summer recess.
Filed Under: Slaughter
AUSTRALIA: Aussie beef promoted as 'non-stunned'
Australian meat is being marketed as "non-stunned" in the Middle East. The NSW Farmers Association's animal welfare chairman, Peter Carter, made the startling claim last week, as he called on the NSW Government to cancel exemptions from pre-slaughter stunning. At least 11 Australian export or domestic abattoirs do not stun stock before slaughtering them. Stunning has been the critical factor in the banning and re-emergence of the Indonesian live cattle trade.
Filed Under: Slaughter