IFANCA® Develops a Unique Five Star Halal Identification System for Halal Certification of Meat Products

CHICAGO, Illinois (June 10, 2015) — The IFANCA Five Star Halal Identification System is designed to help Muslim consumers and industrial users of meat products to understand the following five criteria:

1. If the animal was slaughtered by a Muslim, following IFANCA’s standard slaughter procedure.
2. If the animal was slaughtered by a traditional horizontal cut across the neck.
3. If the animals were fed an all natural diet of plant origin.
4. If the plant/slaughterhouse met animal welfare guidelines.
5. The animal was not stunned prior to or after the cut on the neck for bleeding purposes.

IFANCA is committed to ensure that all our halal-certified meat products are from animals slaughtered by Muslims reciting the Tasmiyyah and Takbir on each animal, while cutting the throat. IFANCA does not certify or accept meat slaughtered by non-Muslims.

The Five Star Halal Identification System is a voluntary program that companies can join as a means of informing their customers that their product meets the five star criteria. If a company does not choose to use the IFANCA Five Star Halal Identification System for labeling their products, consumers can still trust the Crescent-M logo to be sure that the meat they purchase meets the basic criteria for zabiha.

Each star in the Five Star Halal Identification System will either have an outline or be fully shaded. If a star is fully shaded it means that the following criteria have been met. It is important to note the position of each star as they correspond with specific criteria.

The numbers and arrows below are not part of the Trademark but are for illustration purposes only.

Star 1 – The shading of the first star underscores IFANCA’s commitment to having only Muslim slaughter persons performing the halal slaughter in plants that we supervise.

Star 2 – The shading of the second star represents a fully traditional hand slaughter with a continuous cut to sever all four vessels by a Muslim.

While IFANCA is committed to making sure that the major vessels of the neck are cut during slaughter, it is allowable in stunned red meat plants to have a multistep cut which involves opening the skin and then cutting the major vessels. In poultry plants IFANCA allows mechanical slaughter if the machine is turned on by a Muslim reciting the Tasmiyyah and Takbir and a Muslim is standing on the line to recite a blessing, supervising the slaughter, and hand slaughtering animals that are missed by the mechanical knife while reciting the Tasmiyyah and Takbir.

Star 3 – The shading of the third star indicates that the slaughter plant has a program in place to ensure that animals were fed an all natural vegetarian diet.

Star 4 – The shading of the fourth star indicates the plant has at least two, third party animal welfare audits per year. Plants must pass both their yearly audits to retain this star. All audits must be conducted by Professional Animal Auditor Certification Organization (PAACO) certified auditors using the species appropriate audit tool.

Star 5 – The shading of the fifth star indicates the animals were not stunned prior to slaughter or after the cut is made.

The IFANCA Five Star Halal Identification System is now open to all qualified meat industries. Those who wish to utilize this system should contact IFANCA for the application procedure.

Further information, contact:

Dr. Kristin Pufpaff, IFANCA Staff Veterinarian
email: halal@ifanca.org
Tel: +1 847 993 0034