It is our privilege to honor Abbott Nutrition as the Company of the Year at the 13^th Annual International Halal Food Conference. Abbott is a global, broad-based health care company devoted to the discovery, development, manufacture and marketing of pharmaceuticals and medical products, including nutritionals, devices and diagnostics. The company employs nearly 90,000 people and markets its products in more than 130 countries.

Global citizenship is an integral part of Abbott's mission to improve people's lives, focused on four key areas: innovating for the future, enhancing access to health care, protecting patients and consumers, and safeguarding the environment. Working in partnership with others, Abbott leverages its core business expertise and resources to create sustainable solutions in countries around the world.

Abbott has been included on the Dow Jones Sustainability Indexes (DJSI) for six consecutive years, and ranked sixth overall on the global "100 Best Corporate Citizens List 2010" compiled by Corporate Responsibility magazine. The company was named one of the top three "2010 Best in Class" companies in its industry sector by Storebrand Investments, and was named among the global leaders for online citizenship reporting and stakeholder engagement by Lundquist. Abbott also was among the top 10 percent of companies onNewsweek magazine's "Greenest Companies in America" list, and was named to the Maplecroft Climate Innovation Index for excellence in climate-related innovation and carbon management.

In addition, FORTUNE magazine named Abbott the No. 1 Most Admired Company in its industry sector in 2010, in part for the company's strong performance in social responsibility. Abbott also has been recognized for its sustainability efforts in countries around the world, including Brazil, China, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Korea, Mexico, Singapore, Tanzania and the United States.

The following were criteria the company met that earned it the IFANCA "Company of the Year" Award: Abbott is a major corporation with a global halal program. Several Abbott Nutrition products have been certified for almost a decade and it has an excellent program of label control for the halal logo. During the past five years Abbott halal conformance and execution has been outstanding. Abbott has been very proactive in dealing with issues arising from South East Asian markets, specifically Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia. 

By Haider Khattak

In Islam, there are strict requirements for the slaughter of animals: the animal must be of a halal species, slaughtered by a Muslim of sound mind; the name of God must be pronounced at the time of slaughter; and the slaughter must be done by cutting the throat of the animal in a manner that induces rapid, complete bleeding and results in the quickest death.

Certain other conditions should also be observed. These include considerate treatment of the animal, giving it water to prevent thirst. A sharp knife must be used to cut the throat without severing the head, allowing the blood to drain completely. This is the traditional method of slaughtering in Islam. These conditions ensure the humane treatment of animals before and during slaughter.

To carry out the slaughtering process properly by hand, a team of Muslim slaughter persons is required at each line. The number of slaughter persons depends on line speed, size of the birds, and duration of slaughtering process. Slaughtering by hand is preferred by all Muslims and widely followed in Muslim countries and other countries where Muslims control slaughterhouses. This method does not contradict any Islamic tenets.

Mechanical or machine slaughter of birds, which was initiated in Western countries, is gaining acceptance among Muslims. Almost all countries that import chicken accept mechanically-killed birds. The method of slaughter by machine approved by IFANCA is different in the following aspects from what is usually practiced by the industry in North America:

• A Muslim while pronouncing the name of God switches on the machine.
• The Muslim slaughter person then positions himself or herself beside the machine to make a cut on the neck, if the machine misses a bird or if the cut is not adequate for proper bleeding.
• The Muslim slaughter person also continuously invokes the name of God on the birds while slaughtering and witnessing the machine kill. The height of the blade is adjusted to make a cut on the neck, right below the head, and not across the head.
• If both the machine and the Muslim slaughter person miss a bird, it is discarded by the inspector.
• In a mechanical slaughter, the machine and the rotary knife are there to assist the Muslim slaughter man in performing the duties accurately and efficiently. Under IFANCA procedures,for a proper mechanical zabiha slaughter, a Muslim must be involved in the slaughter intervention all the time.

The issue of Zabiha by machine was discussed and pondered over at the Ninth Fiqh Seminar of the Islamic Fiqh Academy held at Bharuch, India. The delegates had unanimously decided its validities and invalidities under various circumstances. However, the scholars and jurists were divided over one of the aspects of Zabiha by machine. The Seminar observed that such a complicated issue requires more thoughtful deliberation as to the pros and cons. Delegates were asked to revisit the issue after giving the matter more thought. Towards this end, the Academy sent out a second comprehensive questionnaire. A number of replies poured in. In the light of those replies by scholars from all over the Muslim world, the following conclusions were arrived at:

61.1 In case the animal comes in front of the slaughterer in an unconscious state, hanging on from the chains or the strap of the machine run by electric power and the slaughterer recites "Bismillah" (In the name of God) before slaughtering it with his own hands, making sure that the animal was alive at the moment of being slaughtered, then such a procedure is distinctly valid because only the process of carting is being carried out by the machine while the remaining act of slaughtering is done by human hands. The Academy urges Muslim owners of slaughter-houses to introduce and popularise this process. Several slaughterers can be employed in order to speed-up the slaughtering process, if the need so arises.

61.2 A situation where both the carting and the slaughtering of animals is done by the machines in such a way that it starts functioning upon the pressing of a button and the animals get slaughtered turn by turn: This has invoked different opinions:

1. The slaughtering of the first animal would be permissible while the slaughtering of the remaining animals will be impermissible. This is the opinion voiced by most of the delegates present in the Seminar.
2. The slaughtering of the first animal would also be invalid. This is the view of some of the delegates who are as follows:

    

   • Mufti Shabbir Ahmad Qasmi, Muradabad
   • Ml. Badr Ahmed Mujeebi, Patna
   • Ml. Mujeebul Ghaffar AsadAzmi, Varanasi
   • Ml. AbulHasan Ali, Gujarat

    

3. The slaughtering of the first animal would stand valid. Moreover, the other animals, which get slaughtered before the slaughtering process is over is also permissible. This is the unanimous opinion of the following delegates:

    

   • Ml. Raisul Ahrar Nadvi
   • Ml. Sabahuddin Malik Falahi
   • Ml. Sultan Ahmed Islahi
   • Ml. Jalaluddin Ansar Umri
   • Ml. Yaqoob Ismail
   • Ml. Sadrul Hasan Nadvi
   • Ml. Qazi Mujahidul Islam Qasmi
   • Ml. Khalid Saifullah Rahmani
   • Mufti Naseem Ahmad Qasmi
   • Ml. Ijaz Ahmad Qasmi

    

61.3 Those delegates who believe that only the first animal gets slaughtered in the Halal way by the slaughtering machines feel that if such a machine is invented which incorporates a large number of knives and which, with the push of a button, operates simultaneously slaughtering several animals at a time, such a process of slaughtering would be permissible from the Islamic point of view.

61.4 Furthermore, it should be made clear that the aforesaid suggestions regarding the slaughtering by machines have been laid out keeping in view the specific structure of the machine. They do not hold good for all kinds and varieties of machines. In fact, legal and juristic opinions shall vary from machine to machine keeping in mind their specific structure and modus operandi.

Reference: http://ifa-india.org/english/decision_Slaughter_Machines.html 

Originally misreported in the media as the First Robotic Sheep "Slaughter man", the Ovine Automation Consortium has reiterated that theirs is the first Robotic Sheep Carcass Processing Robot that will handle a tedious process often delegated to labor at the slaughtering plant. After 20 months of intensive research and development (R&D), the Ovine Automation Consortium is ready to go to market with two robotic machines that signal the start of a new era in automated sheep carcass processing.

The two new pieces of robotic 'kit' are tailor-made for New Zealand sheep-processing chains, and were developed in direct response to industry needs, according to Richard McColl, Ovine Automation Consortium manager.

"We are delivering exactly what the industry has asked for. Our industry partners recognize the immense value of R&D and the gains promised from advanced automated engineering. Significantly, they've also chosen to collaborate as members of a consortium to get maximum benefit from this, and to collectively boost one of New Zealand's largest export earners," Mr. McColl said. He added that the benefits of the new knowledge of technology extended beyond sheep processing.

The Ovine Automation Consortium is one of 14 research consortia funded by the New Zealand Ministry of Science and Innovation (MSI) where the private sector partners match the Government's funding dollar-for-dollar. The consortium was funded $8.3 million for this project, and matched this amount.

"As well as partnering research organizations with industry, research consortia pave the way for collaboration among industry members. The meat processing industry members set an excellent example, and MSI will continue to invest in consortia to ensure that industries critical to our economy gain and retain an international competitive edge through their uptake of innovative R&D," said Dr. Templer. 

March 2011 – Issue 16 of Halal Consumer magazine published in the summer of 2009 carried an article titled "Green Food Packaging and Why Halal Consumers Should Care". Research similar to that covered in that article has today resulted in IFANCA Client, PepsiCo launching a new environmentally friendly bottle which is not only great for nature and the environment but could potentially boost their sales. PepsiCo announced that their new PET bottle is made from plant based renewable resources and is 100% recyclable. The bottle is made using raw materials such as corn husks, pine bark and even switch grass to create a material that looks and feels like plastic and is fully recyclable.

The new green bottle will be put into pilot production during 2012 and if this proves to be successful then the company has said that it intends to then move the bottle into full scale production.

PepsiCo Chairman and CEO, Indra Nooyi, said: "PepsiCo is in a unique position, as one of the world's largest food and beverage businesses, to ultimately source agricultural by-products from our food business to manufacture a more environmentally preferable bottle for our beverages business – a sustainable business model that we believe brings to life the essence of Performance with Purpose." 

In an article featuring facts and the background of halal Natural Food Merchandiser describes why local groceries should stock up on Muslim-friendly products. In the article Maria Omar, spokeswomen for IFANCA, says that "collectively, U.S. Muslims spend about $20 billion a year on food. An astonishing 97 percent of Muslim Americans say their religion influences nearly every single purchasing decision they make, according to a recent report by Ogilvy Noor, an international Islamic branding agency."

While conventional giants like Kraft and Cargill started certifying halal products in the 1990s, Coleman Natural meats and Tom's of Maine personal care products (which adhere to the same halal standards as food) round out the short list of natural halal items. Without access to those brands, the majority of halal consumers find their food at ethnic neighborhood butchers or on websites like Halal Healthy, Green Zabiha and Zabihah.com. Adds Omar: "The American Muslim consumer is out there. They're going to keep asking for halal; it's just a matter of which company steps up and provides it."

Read the entire story at http://newhope360.com/print/application-specific/are-you-stocking-halal-certified-foods?page=3.