[fuesquemill]

I contacted Restaurant Depot in Milford, CT (203 795 9900) and asked where the Halal certified chicken comes from. They said Allen Farms Poultry (302 629 9163). I spoke to someone at Allen Farms and they advised that the Halal certification comes from "Halal Food Council SEA" and their # is 410 548 1728.

From their website: http://halalfoodcouncil.info/index.html


Halal Food Council International (HFCI) is one of the international halal certifier operating
in USA.

HFCI got recognition from JAKIM (Malaysia), MUIS (Singapore), and MUI (Indonesia) under the name of Halal Food Council South East Asia (HFC–SEA). HFC–SEA main business is to certify meat and meat products in USA.

HFCI strictly follow the guideline of halal as set by Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia. This guideline appears in the Codex Alimentarius (1997) that has been approved by all Muslim countries in the world. This includes the standard of halal slaughter, halal food, halal cosmetics and halal usable goods.

CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENT: A GENERAL REVIEW OF ALL EXISTING STANDARD.

1) Premise Only Produces Halal Product:

- There must be no contamination between halal and non-halal products in the storage and manufacturing.

2) Premise Complies With Good Manufacturing:

- This includes cleanliness and full hygienic system in the factory and the environment surrounding the factory. However, factory with normal or manual cleaning procedure can apply for halal certification with strict observation from our consultant.

3) Premise With Two (2) Muslim Workers Is Preferable:

- The Muslim workers can help factory in complying with halal guideline. However factory without Muslim worker is also qualified to get halal certification.

4) No Food Served Inside The Factory:

- This is to make sure the factory is always kept clean and free from non-halal element.

5) Only Halal Ingredient For Halal Products:

- Among the halal ingredient are:

i) Free from pork or dog

ii) Free from non-slaughtered animal

iii) Free from animal part, except what has been certified halal

iv) Free from animal fat such as enzyme, emulsifier etc. except what has been certified halal.

v) Free from filth or najis

vi) Free from wine or alcohol


6) There Is No Contamination Between Halal And Non Halal In The Premise:

- Only factory or premise served or produced with halal products can be certified halal. Premise that produces non-halal product cannot be certified unless they discontinue the non-halal and go for halal only. They can operate for halal products after undergoing cleansing procedure according to Islamic law.

I ask the knowledgeable brothers and sisters, the Ulama especially, can someone contact them and ask the pertinent questions, or perhaps if they are close to their offices in Maryland, please visit them.

Can we assume their "Halal" certification is proper according to the Shariah?

The Halal chicken (as well as beef) sold at Restaurant depot is spread all over the US and in our vicinity a restaurant is across the street from the mosque. Everyone trusts the brother that the food is Halal, but once I found out it was from Restaurant Depot I became worried.

Is the certification from Halal Food Council SEA valid ?