September 15, 2010

 

More Kazakh producers offer halal meat

The number of Kazakhstan companies selling meat that complies with Islamic law has increased from a handful a decade ago to 500, and is expected to continue growing, government officials say.

 

The expanding domestic market for halal meat is actually rooted more in health than in religion, producers say. Animals used in halal production are fed no additives and are slaughtered in a way that minimises the formation of bacteria.

 

That makes their meat an organic product that both Muslims and non-Muslims buy.

 

Meat is far from being the only halal product. The range of others includes cosmetics and medicines. But meat is a major part of the global halal market.

 

President Nursultan Nazarbayev gave a push to Kazakhstan's halal-meat movement a couple of years ago by pointing out to domestic producers the huge market in nearby Islamic countries.

 

He said Kazakhstan producers should follow the example of Australia, which has 40 companies selling halal meat around the globe.

 

To help producers capture more of the halal-meat market in Central Asia, Southwest Asia and the Middle East, the government and industry are co-sponsoring the First Kazakhstan International Halal Expo 2010 in October in Astana. The organisers have invited representatives of 50 countries to the event.

 

Kazakhstan began certifying halal-meat producers in 2006. The Ministry of Industry and Trade created a Halal Standards Committee, which checks the operations of companies that want to market halal meat to insure they comply with Islamic law.

 

Most of the certified operations are in Almaty - which with 3.5 million people is the country's largest population centre - and in the surrounding Almaty Province, officials say.

 

A surprise to some government officials is that more than half of the owners of halal-meat operations are non-Muslims.

 

Kazakhstan uses Malaysia's halal standards in its certification process. Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan also have also adopted them.

 

The standards apply not only to the growing and slaughtering of animals, but also to the cleaning of the utensils and equipment used in producing the meat.

 

Both domestic producers of halal meat and international companies exporting halal products to Kazakhstan must meet the standards.

 

Certification is good for a year, although all halal-meat-production operations are subject to spot inspections.