Locally produced beef has won Halal certification, which means it
is acceptable for consumption by Muslims, the Council of Agriculture
(COA) reported on Thursday.
Noting that Halal is an Arabic word meaning “lawful,” COA officials
said Taiwan-produced beef with Halal certification is now available
from a local store.
The shop owner, with assistance from the COA, the Taipei Grand Mosque
and a national beef trade association, only managed to make the
Halal-certified beef available after months of painstaking efforts —
from the building of a special ranch where cattle are raised to the
construction of a Halal abattoir and a Halal packaging facility, the
COA officials said.
SANITATION
Officials from the Taipei Grand Mosque said the beef from the specially
designated store meets high food security and sanitation standards and
is absolutely free of excess water, which is sometimes injected by
unscrupulous dealers into local cattle prior to slaughter in order to
artificially increase their market weight.
The availability of the Halal beef will help meet the demand from
Taiwan’s approximately 150,000 Muslims, COA officials said.
OTHER MARKETS
“If the Halal industry flourishes, Taiwan might consider making inroads
into other Muslim markets around the world with Taiwanese Halal
products,” a COA official said.
The idea of producing Halal beef locally came after the COA heard
complaints from Muslims living in Taiwan as well as buyers from other
Asian countries that they had seen very few Taiwanese food products
carrying Halal certification.
Halal certification is recognition that the products are permissible
under Islamic law and can be used or consumed by Muslims.
