The UAE awards HMC the Halal Certifier License in support of UK Exports
By the Grace of the Almighty, the hard work of our employees and support from the slaughterhouses, we are delighted to announce that the Halal Monitoring Committee has been accepted as an approved halal certifying body by the UAE Ministry of Environment and Water after their official visit in March 2011. The approval is a boost for HMC suppliers looking to export their products to the Middle East and allows them the opportunity to seek new markets for their certified products.
The Halal Working Group of EBLEX had arranged for the UAE delegation to meet with the UK’s four main Halal accreditation bodies. These bodies were reviewed in detail including visits to review head office operations, review of Halal standards, actual inspection of work at slaughter houses and a detailed desk audit over a space of three months. HMC passed these audit tests and criteria to become fully recognised by the UAE.
The delegation was very impressed with HMC’s independent monitoring system and the comprehensive nature of the HMC inspection regime. Shaykh Yunus Dudhwala, Chairman of HMC commented, “the UAE delegation were extremely surprised and impressed to see our inspectors continuously monitoring at all times during production. We are very pleased with our approval by the UAE as this is the first time we have been audited by an International country and this firmly puts HMC on the global map. It serves to recognize HMC for its strong commitment to genuine Halal on the world stage”.
The delegation commended HMC for its scholarly led Islamic ethos and its commitment to un-stunned production and continuous inspection system. Shaykh Yunus added, “we are pleased to see the UAE and Arab Countries alike re-affirm its preference to un-stunned as the controversial nature of mechanical slaughter and stunning continue to be raised globally”.
The UAE has a population of five million people from its seven member Emirate states. Halal adhering to strict animal welfare, quality and safety standards is a pre-condition for consumption of food for Muslims around the world.
Faz Mulla, Operations Director at HMC explained, “An export linkage with the UAE will provide a boost to the British economy and will be welcome news for UK Halal producing companies”.
HMC is the UK’s largest Halal certifying body, employing over 145 people. It is a registered charity and also a not for profit organisation. It is overseen by a voluntary body, the National Executive Committee that consists of mainly scholars who are the Trustees of the organisation.
For more information, please contact the HMC, Nadeem Adam on 0844 846 0340.
