Australian Halal brand goes global
The unique Halal brand that was developed last year by Meat & Livestock Australia for use in the Middle East red meat market has now gone global.The brand, which supports the majority of Australian-produced Halal red meat sold in the Middle East, is now set to appear with Australian red meat sold in Islamic countries around the world.
MLA’s Middle East regional manager, Ian Ross said the global expansion of the Halal brand is an important step towards expanding markets for Australian red meat. “With 28 per cent of the world’s population being Muslim, and with most of these people living in countries with growing economies it’s vital the Australian red meat industry positions itself in the best possible way to supply these important markets,” Mr Ross said. “The Halal brand shows that the Australian red meat industry is culturally aware and that we respect the laws of Islam.”
“Australia is the only country in the world with a globally-endorsed and certified Halal brand underpinned by government legislation.”
Under Islamic law, for meat to be permissible for consumption, it must be Halal, or lawful, and animals must be slaughtered by a Muslim in accordance with the Islamic ‘Shariah’, or law.
The MLA-developed Halal brand appears on retail meat packs and point of sale and guarantees that the meat has come from an animal that has been slaughtered according to the strict Islamic Shariah. Under the new arrangement, Halal meat sent from Australia to Islamic countries is accompanied by an official government certificate and stamp which is further endorsed with an authorised Islamic Organisation stamp.
In Australia, the Halal process is regulated through the Australian Government Authorised Halal Program (AGAHP) by AQIS and is supervised by independent Islamic organisations.
All Australian Halal meat is labelled as having passed through the AGAH program and this certification is only allowed to be placed on meat that has been processed at a registered Halal certified abattoir.
Australia currently exports beef, sheepmeat and goatmeat to over 40 Islamic countries, including Indonesia, which is Australia’s fifth largest beef export market. It is estimated that there are over 2 billion Muslims around the world and that the market for Halal products globally is worth $570 billion annually.
Dear sirs,
On behalf of the Muslims in Kansai, Japan, we really appreciate Australia’s undertaking to supply Halal meat to Muslim countries.
I am sure that you know there are millions of Muslims living in non-Muslim countries in Europe, North and South USA, and of course Japan. In Japan, we would like be able to buy your Halal beef products over the counter from supermarkets and eat in Japanese restaurants that use your beef. However Japanese supermarkets repack it with Japanese labels so we cannot tell if it is halal or not., and likewise we can’t see the labels on the Aistralian beef served in restaurant chain.
From a business point of view it good makes sense for all abatoirs in Australia to employ slaughterers who are Muslim, so I have a question.
Is all Australian beef supplied to Japan halal?
Your answer would be very useful for the millions of Muslims in Japan.
Sincerely,
Tony Bewer