Alhamdulillah was-salatu was-salaamu ‘ala rasoolillah. All thanks and praise to ALLAH (S) and we ask that HIS blessings and peace be upon HIS Messenger, Muhammad (s). Assalaamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu!

It looks like 2002 will be another busy year for IFANCA. There are many items on the plate for IFANCA and a number of new initiatives are in the offing.

During April, we are sponsoring Halal food Conference 2002 in Toronto, Canada. This popular conference began in 1999, right here in Chicago. We moved to Buena Park, California, USA in 2000, then to Paris, France in 2001. Now we are back in North America this year. The conference has been a great opportunity for food and ingredient producers to come and learn about Halal, the requirements, the challenges and the opportunities. With speakers from IFANCA, the food industry, Islamic scholars and importing countries, a wealth of information is packed into two days. The conference also provides an opportunity for the industry executives to meet the local Muslim community. This year’s theme is Current And Future Issues In Halal. We have already had requests for holding next year’s conference.

Parlez-vous Francais? We recently launched a French language version of our website. The website has been a popular stop for people seeking information on Halal and certification services. Exporters, importers, legislators and government officials, students and others have benefited by visiting the site and sending in questions. We are pleased to say we receive many complements.

Halal is becoming a more popular site on college campuses, as a number of colleges have launched programs to provide Halal meals in student dining halls. We expect this momentum to continue through the foreseeable future.

More Halal legislation is on the way as a number of states are considering Halal Food Laws. Michigan recently introduced a Halal Food law and other states should be following soon. IFANCA continues to provide input, support and information for all of these efforts.

And our closing supplication is “Praise be to ALLAH, Subhanahu wa ta’ala, the Cherisher and Sustainer of the Worlds”. [RMO]