Boycott Halal

[Arwon]

You're not forced to patronise those particular private businesses.

 

[JollyRoger]

Are you willing to pay for Christians to spread their message? This is exactly what is happening with the profits from an Halal certification going to Islamic Mosques and schools. Just re-read the article in the OP.

You still haven't explained how you are forced to do anything.

 

[Arakhor]

I don't approve of the Salvation Army's attitude to homosexuality, so I don't support their charity. Likewise, I would never attend a creationist museum, unless perhaps it was free and it was pouring down when I was nearby.

Until it becomes a national tax like VAT, I don't think there's anything to worry about.

 

[El_Machinae]

Well, there's also a potential issue of a company expanding into the Halal market, and then 'passing on' these costs to their non-Halal customers. I cannot imagine it happening, but it's theoretically possible. At that point, you could justify boycotting the whole company instead of a product line. But, I'm under the impression that these companies only offer Halal products (ostensibly at a higher price)

 

[Defiant47]

Well, there's also a potential issue of a company expanding into the Halal market, and then 'passing on' these costs to their non-Halal customers. I cannot imagine it happening, but it's theoretically possible. At that point, you could justify boycotting the whole company instead of a product line. But, I'm under the impression that these companies only offer Halal products (ostensibly at a higher price)

Why would you boycott them for making a smart business decision, is my question

 

[Formaldehyde]

Are you willing to pay for Christians to spread their message? This is exactly what is happening with the profits from an Halal certification going to Islamic Mosques and schools. Just re-read the article in the OP.

What do you think happens when you patronize many businesses owned by Christians, especially fundamentalists? Does your boycott extend to them, as well as rabbis who donate some of thee proceeds from certifying food items as being kosher?

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

Are you willing to pay for Christians to spread their message? This is exactly what is happening with the profits from an Halal certification going to Islamic Mosques and schools. Just re-read the article in the OP.

Why don't you reread post 5? VRWC asked a question which many have repeated and which you have avoided to address for no less than 8 pages.

 

[Borachio]

And because I'm such a naturally helpful person, here it is again:

I really don't see how this is enforcing a religious law upon those companies unless your own government is forcing those companies to produce Halal certified products. The companies can always opt out of having anything to do with it, can't they?

It's a good question.

(And incidentally, speaking for myself, I have no view one way or another on Halal products.)

 

[El_Machinae]

Why would you boycott them for making a smart business decision, is my question

Oh, I think it's perfectly okay (read: 'recommended') to boycott a company that's doing or has done something you disapprove of. I boycott Kraft entirely because of their association with Philip Morris and their TV adverts suggesting KD is healthy. I think it's perfectly okay to try to get other people to join your boycott (supra). I'm just having trouble following C_H's logic.

 

[Ziggy Stardust]

Before I boycott halal, I would have to become a consumer first.

I think CH's call for action could backfire.

 

[Defiant47]

Oh, I think it's perfectly okay (read: 'recommended') to boycott a company that's doing or has done something you disapprove of. I boycott Kraft entirely because of their association with Philip Morris and their TV adverts suggesting KD is healthy. I think it's perfectly okay to try to get other people to join your boycott (supra). I'm just having trouble following C_H's logic.

Good point. I made an oversight.

 

[Rashiminos]

I srongly suggest vegetarian diet...

Who is paying? Aussi goverment or companies doing business with muslims?

Ah yes, the state of vegetative dieting...

 

[classical_hero]

You still haven't explained how you are forced to do anything.

They are forcing companies to pay for certification when it isn't needed on food that are automatically considered allowed under Islam. That is basically extortion. Soon every food you eat will be certified.
http://www.smh.com.au/comment/halal-easter-eggs-and-cat-food-where-big-money-meets-religion-20130327-2gujc.html

Cadbury will sell a mountain of chocolates this Easter, as it does every Easter. It has been careful to make sure that its products are certified as halal, even though it is not necessary. Hundreds of companies in Australia do the same. Halal certification has become a big business.

The essence of halal is that any food is forbidden to Muslims if it includes blood, pork, alcohol, the flesh of carnivores or carrion, or comes from an animal which has not been slaughtered in the correct manner, which includes having its throat slit. Food labelled as halal invariably involves the payment of a fee. It does not extend to chocolate but Cadbury lists 71 products which are halal, ranging from Dairy Milk to Freddo frogs to Red Tulip chocolates. The website also states: ''We do not have any kosher-certified products.''

''Cadbury also pay for halal certification on the Easter product range, even though Easter is a Christian celebration and nothing to do with Islam,'' says Kirralie Smith, who runs a website called Halal Choices. The website lists 340 companies in Australia that pay for halal certification, including Coles, Woolworths, Aldi, Franklins, Kellogg's, MasterFoods, Nestle and even Kraft's Vegemite.

Halal Choices has received more than 250,000 visits since Smith, a Christian activist, created the website two years ago to draw attention to the incremental extension of sharia into Australian culture.
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''[Cadbury has] a standard letter to people who complain about their halal certification which says they have been assured the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils [which issues halal certifications] are not involved in any illegal activity,'' Smith said. ''They might want to explain the $9 million in fraud involving the Malek Fahd school.''

(Last year the Malek Fahd Islamic School in Sydney was ordered to repay $9 million in state funding which the state and federal governments said had been illegally transferred to the Australian Federation of Islamic Councils. A federal government audit also questioned numerous payments made to AFIC by Islamic colleges in Canberra, Brisbane and Adelaide.)

Halal certification has long been an accepted practice similar to the labelling of food as kosher for Jewish consumers. The website of the Islamic Co-Ordination Council of Victoria states: ''With five office staff, two external food technologists, four sharia advisers and over 140 registered halal slaughtermen/inspectors, ICCV is the largest and the most respected halal certifier in Australia … We have no shortage of manpower. We are ready to serve any company in Australia that is interested in producing halal product (meat and processed food).''

At the World Halal Forum held in Malaysia last April, Australia had 13 delegates. Nestle was a major sponsor, Fonterra another. The forum's website stated: ''Two milestones [at the conference] were the first major steps towards the convergence of halal and Islamic Finance, and recognition of the importance of halal accreditation schemes, especially in the non-Muslim world.''

What troubled Smith was the extensive payments for halal certification for hundreds of products that did not require any halal process. She then discovered examples of overt pressure.

''A wholesale chicken supplier in Perth lost $120,000 a year over three years because he wasn't halal certified,'' she said. ''The chickens he sold had been ritually slaughtered and were halal, but because he would not pay for certification he found all his outlets were forced to boycott him. He was outraged and held out for three years but had to give in to save his business. … Isn't that illegal?''

Halal mainly involves meat. Much of the non-meat food supply is intrinsically halal, and thus does not require certification, including milk, honey, fish, vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts and grains. Yet many producers and suppliers of such products pay for halal certification.

''I emailed Capilano Honey after I discovered they were paying for halal certification,'' Smith said. ''This was their response: 'While we appreciate that honey is considered halal under Islamic law, it is our customer's requirement to provide halal certification in order for us to conduct business with them.' This sounds like extortion to me. And why does nearly every fresh loaf of bread you buy in a supermarket or fast food chain have a paid halal certification? I have a list of 23 pages of halal certificates for breads.

''Parmalat have a huge list of halal-certified products, most of them being the white milk you buy in supermarkets. White milk does not need to be certified. They don't mark their labels and now they have removed the certificates from their website because of negative feedback.

''Purina Fancy Feast cat food is now on the list of halal-certified foods. Are cats becoming Muslim? Or is a lot of this just a money-making scheme?''

 

[Zelig]

Have you considered starting up a budget halal certification company in order to save them money?

 

[El_Machinae]

"13Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother or sister to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause them to fall."

 

[FriendlyFire]

They are forcing companies to pay for certification when it isn't needed on food that are automatically considered allowed under Islam. That is basically extortion. Soon every food you eat will be certified.

http://www.smh.com.au/comment/halal-easter-eggs-and-cat-food-where-big-money-meets-religion-20130327-2gujc.html

Damm 2% of Muslims in Australia making us eat Halal food
EATS PORK BELLY RIGHT NOW TO PROVE THAT MUSLIMS TAKING OVER

Sheehan's columns in the Sydney Morning Herald are generally written from a right-wing perspective and are noted for their criticism of the "human rights industry", Australia's Muslim community, large-scale immigration and the Australian Labor Party. Other topics covered by Sheehan include criticism of the Australian legal system's handling of sexual assault cases as well as criticism of the neo-conservative
ideology.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Sheehan_(journalist)

As I posted a year ago
For export into Indonesia which is Muslim country, with corrupt government and wide spread corruption. Is asking for bribes to certify Halal foods for there own domestic consumption.

Also the free market is never wrong.

 

[Silurian]

They are forcing companies to pay for certification when it isn't needed on food that are automatically considered allowed under Islam. That is basically extortion. Soon every food you eat will be certified.

Many products such as lamb burgers have been found to contain pork. I would not be surprised that industrial food producers would put pork products in honey if it would benefit them.
This certification is to reduce the the chance that industrial food producers will start putting pork products in honey.

If you do not want to buy halal products find a company that does not want to benefit from selling to the large muslim neigbouring country and buy from them.

 

[Farm Boy]

Dammit. Now I want honey glazed bacon. Thanks!

 

[Silurian]

Thats sounds good. May have a bacon and honey sandwich for lunch.

 

[amadeus]

They are forcing companies to pay for certification when it isn't needed on food that are automatically considered allowed under Islam.

The Australian government forces companies to sell only halal foods? Or does your definition of "force" include the marketing boards who decide that they'd rather sell more meat?

And if halal meat certification is such a costly scam that causes meat companies to drive up the price of meat to satisfy a religious minority, why isn't a meat company lowering its prices to cater to the majority (92% of Australians are European whites) and putting the other halal hostages out of business?