The HALAL conspiracy: Buying Islamic food equals to funding terrorists?

SOCIAL media can be a useful tool for consumers to talk back to companies. Sometimes, it’s used for good. But sometimes, it’s used to bully a business that’s done nothing wrong.

There’s a pervasive conspiracy theory floating out there. You’ve probably heard or read it at some point. It goes something like this: That all ‘real’ Australians should stop buying halal-certified food or you’ll inadvertently end up funding terrorists.

Websites have popped up in recent years which have sought to ‘uncover the truth’ about halal certification. One of the more active sites, Halal Choices, claims certifying bodies are the beneficiaries of a “constant stream of funds to support Islamic projects which contribute to the advancement of sharia (Islamic law) here and around the world.”

The site warns that “sharia [law] goes way beyond food and halal but the point we want to make here is that all of the halal certification organisations are operating under sharia law and desire for sharia law to be accepted as a part of our mainstream society.”

Halal Choices argue that its agenda is not a racially driven one but is merely informing consumers so they can make a purchasing decision based on their choices. One of the main purposes of Halal Choices is calling out companies who are halal-certified but don’t display it on their packaging.

Other websites that try to ‘expose’ halal certification include Q Society of Australia, which also has a tab that’s titled ‘Why we oppose Islam’. Other websites try to make convoluted links to terrorist groups, such as the vocal Boycott Halal in Australia group.

Big brands such as Vegemite are halal compliant. Source: News Corp Australia

While this may sound like a fringe group, they’re getting louder and their activities have gained some traction. Last week, a South Australian dairy company, Fleurieu Milk & Yoghurt Company, said it will drop its halal certification as a result of a concerted campaign against the company.

Fleurieu sales and marketing manager Nick Hutchinson told news.com.au the trouble started a couple of weeks ago when he received an email asking if the company’s products are halal-certified. Mr Hutchinson said he suspected where the exchange would lead as he had “seen the hate campaign”, but wanted to be upfront. So he replied that, yes, Fleurieu does have halal certification.

Fleurieu does not need halal certification in a general sense because its dairy products are halal anyway, but paid for the certification because of a reportedly $50,000 contract with Emirates airline to supply yoghurt.

Mr Hutchinson said his email response was posted online, which prompted a slew of abusive emails and phone calls, as well as a bombardment on its social media pages.

“We’re a small company,” he said. “We don’t agree with what’s expressed in those emails. But we were worried from a sales and marketing perspective. Our concerns were that our loyal supporter base were reading the comments and starting to doubt the company.”

Mr Hutchinson said while the company didn’t receive any direct threats against the business, it was concerned about the welfare of its staff. “I’ve spoken to other South Australian companies that have gone through this. They received threats such as burning down their premises or death threats. We didn’t want it to get to that point.”

Mr Hutchinson said that in the aftermath, the company has received feedback from consumers who have expressed disappointment that Fleurieu had caved in to a minority group. Today, the company shut down its Facebook page after it had become a warring platform for the anti-halal brigade and their detractors.

Halal meat must meet certain requirements to be certified. Source: News Limited

Mr Hutchinson said despite the backlash against its stance, the company stood by its decision as it needed to put the welfare of its staff before the Emirates contract. However, he expressed dismay that social media can be used in this way to bully businesses. “It’s an extremely hard issue to police and something needs to be done,” he said.

Fleurieu are hardly alone in receiving threats. Iconic Australian brand Byron Bay Cookie Company said it received threats over its Halal certification that was aggressive to the point where it consulted the police, according to the ABC. Big name companies such as Cadbury, Parmalat, Bega and Nestle have also landed on lists of companies to boycott over its halal certification.

The South Australia government’s Investment and Trade Minister, Martin Hamilton-Smith, said yesterday that prejudice had no place in Australia and urged businesses to resist misinformed consumer bullying.

He said: “One of our key friends and trading partners, Indonesia, is the largest Islamic country in the world. We should embrace these opportunities rather than exclude them. Mr Hamilton-Smith said SA businesses exported $839 million worth of goods to the Middle East in the 12 months to September.

Halal certification can be worth big money to an Australian business looking to export to Islamic countries. The Dubai Chamber of Commerce recently estimated that the halal market could be worth up to $US1.6 trillion by 2018.

So what does halal actually mean? It’s a religious requirement for Muslims that the food they consume is prepared in a certain way — one that is free from pork products, alcohol and non-halal meat sources. It’s also a requirement that halal meat is slaughtered by a Muslim and that the animal is alive. In Australia, it is a legal requirement that animals are slaughtered unconsious, according to the RSPCA, and halal meat producers locally comply with this standard if they are to receive certification.

The halal symbol of the Islamic Co-Ordinating Council of Victoria. Source: Supplied

There are many halal certifying bodies in Australia. Some are for-profit organisations where the money is spent in the same way any private company or employee spends money. Others, such as Muslims Australia, are peak bodies which disburse the funds to benefit the community such as schools, mosques and social work.

The senior auditor and meat inspector of Islamic Co-ordinating Council of Victoria, Gaafar A. Mohammed, told news.com.au: “Australia is the biggest producer of halal food since the 1960s. The market is worth billions of dollars of year to Australia.”

He said that he feels terrible when he sees the myths about halal on the internet. “It makes me feel bad because those people are ignorant and talking nonsense. They’re trying to destroy the good relationship between Australia and other countries. They’re trying to destroy the big volume of trade.

“I think this is politically and racially motivated and I would suggest the government see who is behind this because if it continues, it would damage the industry. Halal is only one of the religious and special slaughter processes that Australia allows so why would they target halal or Islam?

“The manufacturers and the industry themselves are not complaining so who’s behind this?” -News.com.au