HALAL
CERTIFICATE - GOVERNANCE
News:
U.P. bans halal certified
products, export goods to be exempted
What's
in the news?
●
The UP government has ordered a statewide
ban on products being sold with halal certificates with immediate effect.
Key
takeaways:
●
Strict legal action would be taken against
an individual or firm engaged in the production, storage, distribution, buying
and selling of halal certified medicines, medical devices and cosmetics within
Uttar Pradesh, as per the state government.
●
However, export products have been kept
out of the purview of this ban.
Halal:
●
Halal is an Arabic word that loosely translates to ‘permissible’ in English.
●
In the Quran, the term ‘halal’ is
contrasted with the term ‘haram’ —
meaning ‘forbidden’ — and is used to designate the categories of lawful
(and allowed) and unlawful (and forbidden).
Context
of Halal:
●
The term is particularly associated with
Islamic dietary laws to refer to food that is procured, processed, and traded
in compliance with Islamic belief.
●
It is similar to the ‘kashrut’ dietary
rules followed by orthodox Jews, who only consume food that is ‘kosher’, i.e.
permitted in Jewish law.
Haram
Diets:
●
The two items of food that are most
commonly considered haram (non-halal)
are pork (pig meat) and intoxicants (alcohol).
Meat
halal:
●
In the Indian context, halal is mostly
used to refer to the slaughtering
technique used by Muslims.
●
This involves killing the livestock or
poultry through a single cut to the jugular vein, carotid artery (which carries
blood from the brain to the heart and vice versa) and the windpipe with a sharp
knife at the front of the neck.
●
Animals
must be alive and healthy at the time of slaughter and all blood must be
drained from the carcass.
●
During the process, recitation of prayers,
known as shahada, is also prescribed.
Contrast
to Jhatka:
●
Halal is in contrast to the ‘jhatka’
method, preferred by many Hindus and Sikhs, which involves delivering a powerful, single blow to the back of the
animal’s neck, decapitating it.
●
Jhatka specifically involves stunning
animals prior to slaughter, a practice that is not allowed in Islam.
Key
takeaways:
●
Most meat shops owned by Muslims announce
their products as ‘halal’ whereas those owned by Hindus or Sikhs declare
themselves as ‘jhatka’ establishments.
Does
Halal only for Non-vegetarian Foods?
●
Despite the popular usage mentioned above,
halal simply means ‘permissible’ in Islamic law — this does not have to do with
meat at all.
●
So vegetarian
food would be generally considered permissible or ‘halal’, unless it contains
alcohol and so would fish and shellfish.
●
The meaning can also go beyond food and
technically, any consumable item can be deemed halal or haram, depending on
whether they are produced in accordance with Islamic law.
●
Similarly, the term may also be used in
the context of personal care products, packaging materials, animal feed, etc.
Halal
certificates:
●
Halal certificates simply tell a consumer
whether a product meets the requirements for being considered halal or not.
●
They do not indicate the presence of meat
or in and of themselves, have nothing to do with meat.
Halal
certificates in India:
●
India
does not have an official regulator for the certification of halal products.
●
Rather, there are various halal certifying
agencies that provide companies, products, or food establishments halal
certifications.
●
Their legitimacy lies in their
name-recognition among Muslim consumers as well as recognition from regulators
in Islamic countries.
●
For instance, the certification company
Halal India, on its website mentions that certification is provided after a
rigorous process of lab testing and multiple process audits.
●
Halal India’s certification is recognised
by Qatar’s Ministry of Public Health, the UAE’s Ministry of Industry and
Advanced Technology, and Malaysia’s Department of Islamic Development, among
others. These international accreditations are particularly important for
products meant for export to Islamic countries.