Halal Meat Blog

Rainy Day Doll

Art journal entry using pencil and acrylic paint.

Eid al-Adha: A Great Occasion for Muslims

by Brian Harrington Spier

Hasan A. Yahya, Ph.Ds

This article is written for Muslims and non-Muslims for knowledge and understanding between cultures. After reading this article, you will gain some knowledge about a misunderstood Islamic occasions, sometimes among its followers. Yes, a lot of them think that this Eid is so cruel to sheep and is so uncivilized. Because they did not know the reasons for this Eid,Or they do judge the act from the outside. It’s just an invitation to take a deeper look on the occasion.

1. Eid al-Adha is one of the two main occasions for Muslim to celebrate. The occasion is to share those who went for pilgrimage to Makka each year. Almost about three million people gather each year to perform the fifth principle in Muslim Faith. After Shahadatayn, prayer, fasting and giving alms or Zakat. Muslim have to eat meat (Sheep, Cows, and checkens, are legal, but pork like in the Jewish faith is illegal).Eid Al Adha, means the “Fest of Sacrifice”. Muslims celebrate it in remembrance of the story of prophet Ibrahim. As you know God tests us all the time. And God wanted Ibrahim to prove his strong belief in him by checking if he’d do anything for the love of God. So God asked him to kill his own son, which is something impossible normally, and which was so harsh on Ibrahim, but still he chose to fulfill God’s will and sacrifice his son. But the minute he was about to kill his son, God replaced the boy with a sheep to be killed instead of the boy as a reward for his strong belief, proving once again that God tests people’s faith but is never willing to hurt them.

2. Eid Al Adha is an occasion to remember God’s mercy and the devotion and faith of the believers. It’s an occasion to share the poor and give them a chance to eat meat that they can’t afford. If you can afford buying a sheep, then never forget to donate as much as you can for the poor, this is the spirit of Eid Al Adha, it’s not about showing off nor stuffing yourself with different meat dishes. And make sure you use appropriate places for the purpose of slaughtering, and streets aren’t the place for sure. Yet the difference between what God asked us to do and what people are actually doing is what destroyed the balance of nature. God asked us to be good to other creatures, care for them and when we need them, we should do our best not to hurt them. You shouldn’t cut off the leaves of a plant for fun, you shouldn’t burn it and you should use it in a gentle way. Just like animals, you shouldn’t torture them and you shouldn’t use them in a bad way. So no negative use, but you can still use them. “I will not  eat meat. I don’t want to have Mad Cow Disease”, anyone who says this has the right to be scared, but the problem won’t be solved that way. We wouldn’t have got Mad Cow Disease nor Birds’ flue or any other animal disease if we took the right precautions before eating their meat. And God has created us all to live together and improve. Animals eat plants and other animals and sometimes humans. And Humans eat plants and animals and some plants eat other plants and insects and live on the rest of dead bodies. We’re all created as a natural circle and practice loyalty to God. To justify this point, many people might not be satisfied with this argument, but it’s serious, actually a lot of normal people test others’ loyalty towards them in different ways. Men test women’s love, women test men’s loyalty, kids test their family’s appreciation, friends test each other’s trust… etc. Some ways could be reasonable like for example a father asking his son to stop smoking to show his love for his dad, or a mother asking her little girl to eat all her dish to prove her love for her mom. And some are silly, like a woman asking her husband to sell the dearest thing he has just to prove his love for her. Or a guy asking a girl to forget about the whole world and run away with him to a new place where he has no life and no future at all, just to prove her love for him… But the difference between God’s testing and people’s testing is that God just tests and isn’t waiting for things to actually happen, and God rewards without you even doing the thing. God wants nothing in return. But people, we ask, we want things to be done our way, and then we’re just “pleased”. No rewards but a “thank you” that might not even come from the bottom of the heart.

3. Eid al-Adha is an act celebrated to please God and have His forgiveness, no matter what logic behind it. Some people believe as animal friends and call for the rights of animals and all, when they actually aren’t any different from those who eat animal meat.  It is a fact, that we all eat, some eat everything, some eat only vegetables, or fruits or serials. The thing is when you eat vegetables you are eating living creatures as well. And if something doesn’t have eyes nor legs, or if it doesn’t have a mouth, that doesn’t mean it’s dead! Plants are alive, they have souls, they have families, a grand tree, a baby plant … they’re just like all other living creatures.

4. One more point I have to explain here, concerning some words describe meat in the super-markets such as “Halal” meat. It means it was slaughtered following Islamic  instructions, which are: taking a healthy animal (sheep, cow, chicken..), then saying: “In the name of God the Merciful” to it (yes you should talk to it to calm it down and show respect to its soul as well as mercy for its body) and then quickly cut a certain vein in a certain point in the neck. And if you make a quick research you’ll find out that it’s the best way for both the animal and the human, why? For the animal because it’s so quick, and hits the point where pain is felt the least, so it doesn’t hurt the animal at all, opposite to using electric shocks and stuff which leaves the animal suffering before it’s dead. And good for the humans because this cut vein releases excess old blood (following scientific pressure rules) leaving the body with only pure fresh blood that was newly generated and that will be easily took out of the body while cooking. Oh, and last but not least, the released blood should be cleaned away. (1150 words) www.hasanyahya.com

Indian Weddings Now Happening in England

by Brian Harrington Spier

A wedding day is a wonderful thing for everyone, regardless of the faith, culture or origin. Back in the 1970′s, 80′s and 90′s we used to go to our home for weddings. Back home, in my case, is India. We would go there for the weddings of our children. We had many problems in London in those days. To start with the choice of venues was sparse. Also there was the weather, and many of us did not have transportation. On top of that, wedding caterer choices was almost nil. For many of us even accommodation was a problem since an Indian wedding is not simply a day event – it starts a week in advance. You need space, a garden, cooking facilities, space for a tent to accommodate and feed the immediate family for a few days before.

We had issues with the volume purchased of halal meat in the 1970′s and 80′s. We also had issues with Indian vegetables and other cooking ingredients. But things are changing now. Our children wish to have the wedding here, due to friends, facilities and weather, and we not longer have accommodation problems. There are many venue choices, service providers, halal caterers, bridal dress shops, bridal make-up services, mehdi, and even horses should you wish. If you think of an Indian wedding, then you can have it. Many of our guests from India and other parts of Asia actually enjoy coming here to attend and Indian wedding.

Many of our Asian/Indian weddings would take place only in the summertime, rather than any other time of the year. As mentioned, our Asian wedding is not a day event but rather a week long celebration. A week before the wedding day we have over 100 people from immediate family arrive for an evening meal. We have to use the garden for cooking and eating, and so the weather is the most important thing. If the wedding is happening in winter, there will most probably be a problem with the weather.

If our family relatives with to attend the wedding, then summer is the best time. In the summer they will be able to enjoy their stay and have a good holiday too. Our ladies can have very expensive tastes, and the silk clothing for a summer wedding will in fact be easier and cheaper, especially if they d not wish to put a jacket over the dress.

Halal Catering services providers in uk have lots of choices of Asian/Indian/Muslim halal foods. also have lots of wedding themes, and since the last decade, our wedding have been performed frequently in England, and this will continue. It will not be long before a bride and groom from India will insist on having the wedding here in England.

Shami kebabs are made with minced meat and dahl, amongst other things. In this video I reveal another of my lovely toys… I don’t know, but I’ve been told, the free-livin’ woman ain’t got no soul. Recipe at: titlisbusykitchen.com

Enjoy the most delicious South African Foods

by Brian Harrington Spier

South Africa is not only known for its immense natural beauty and culture, but for its great food too. If you want to taste the finger-licking flavor of South African foods, you just need to visit any of the local market and you will get it easily. In a local street in a town in South Africa you can comfortably find Italian, Moroccan, Chinese, Portuguese and Indian food, among others. From fantastic hamburger to sushi, you can find anything here in South Africa.

Few of the South African foods include crocodile sirloin, fried caterpillars and even sheep heads. You will find some South Africans avoid these foods, while others do anything to get the food. As South Africa has so many different cultures and beliefs, you will also come to know that certain foods are eaten for various occasions.

Snake meat is one of the South African foods that visitors might love to taste and is very popular among local cuisine lovers. Foods such as biltong, which is a kind of dried and salted meat, may not sound good but can make you addicted to it. The best way to enjoy it is to take it during your road trip. In South Africa, it is known that a rugby match cannot be watched without it. You can also try your tongue on babotie, which is a highly-improved version of Shephard’s pie. On the other hand, you can also try a traditional South African brrrai (BBQ) with boerewors (hand-made farm sausage).

Since ancient times, Maize has been widely used for African cuisine. Be it Zulu, Sotho, Tswana, or Xhosa, has a diverse preference for eating it, although some dishes or meals have approval by most of them. If you’re visiting South Africa, then you may find it difficult to get access to these traditional dishes. The best idea is to visit your local friend’s home and enjoy mom’s cooking or dad’s braai, as South African home cooking is amazing.

Many people believe that South Africa has got its rich culture due to its continuous search for food. The need for refreshment provoked the Dutch East India Company to install a farm at the tip of Africa. The company was drawn by spices to Java during the mid 1600s and required a half-way refreshment halt for its ships.

South African food is not only popular in its home region but abroad as well. With the increasing globalization, today, people can taste South African foods anywhere in the world.

With extensive expertise in the food processing industry, Sara’s offers a dynamic range of products and South African foods in London, UK.

Visit our website www.saras.co.uk for more information on South African Foods, Halal Meat and Halal Meat UK.

Newborn Goat Kids — Toggenberg, Boer

2 NOV 08 video clips & slide show at Snow Ranch. Newborn kids. Three day-old Boer doelings. Other images. Visit our channel for more information. We produce Organic/Halal/Kosher certified and USDA processed goat meat from the clean & sunny, mountain pastures of Northern California. Healthy, Happy, Grass-Fed, Pasture-Grazed, All-Natural, Clean Meat. We also produce top quality Boer breeder bucks & does. We also do contract forest fire fuels reduction with partners, their goats, and low-impact machinery.

Halal Cosmetics – Ethical Approach

by Brian Harrington Spier

The emergence of Halal cosmetics on the global beauty market with a value proposition that emphasizes universal values appeals to Muslim consumers. Generally “Halal” refers to things or actions that are permissible under Shariah (Islamic law), a parameter designed for health, safety and benefit of all mankind regardless of age, faith or culture. In the scope of Halal cosmetics, the concept covers critical aspects of production including sourcing of Halal ingredients and usage of permissible substances – all must be manufactured, stored, packaged, and delivered in conformity with Shariah requirements.

What is really driving the industry’s demand is the fact that the Muslim population is now dominated by a demographic of young, adherent and dynamic professionals. They are a new generation that adopt their Islamic lifestyle and are generally knowledgeable when it comes to preserving Halal as part of daily life. Market distribution for Halal cosmetic products are yet to be fully adopted by most mainstream retailers. Analysts already predict that Halal cosmetics will be the next thing in the Islamic economy after Halal food and finance. Interestingly, Halal cosmetics are also gaining popularity amongst modern consumers of an Eco-ethical conscious, i.e. those willing to pay a premium for organic, natural and earthy cosmetics products to suit their modern lifestyle.

What is progressing now will be the emergence of Muslim home brands that are already making waves through online distribution, marketing Halal cosmetics as the choice of purity, safety and cleanliness. This new evolution surely heralds a significant potential boost in the Halal cosmetics market signalling a rapid change in consumers’ preference in making their decision when buying beauty products. As a nascent phenomenon, the Halal cosmetics industry is no stranger to issues of contention amongst Muslims particularly by Shariah scholars concerning the Halal status of ingredients and processing aids. Utilization of typical ingredients such as gelatine, alcohol, placenta, lard and collagen are ubiquitous within the mainstream cosmetics industry mainly due to their wide availability and in some cases, cost effectiveness.

Manufacturers of conventional cosmetic products also have a strong inclination to use ingredients of waste and by-products from the livestock industry with little or no regard to Halal compliance. An example of this is ingredients which are derived from the rendering industry. In the United States alone, 12.5 million tonnes of dead animals, bones, fat and meat waste, and used cooking fats and oils are heat-treated and melted down every year from hundreds of plants to cater for the cosmetics industry needs.

At this current stage, it is clear that Halal cosmetics have developed far beyond a novelty. With demand on the rise, policy makers need to march through beyond differences of ideologies in resolving contentious issues pertaining to Shariah and technical matters. Dynamic collaboration with key parallel interest groups such as organic, vegan, ethical and environmental rights will surely strengthen the value of Halal-compliant cosmetics products in the global market.

Check out Pure Halal products at One pure Halal beauty for guilt-free beauty

More Halal Meat Cooking Articles

How To Cook Yerself Scouse

BE SCOUSE. EAT SCOUSE: www.facebook.com INTERNATIONAL SCOUSE NIGHT 28th FEBRUARY 2011 It’s that time of year again! Time to get together with our friends and family around the world and celebrate the GREATEST CITY IN THE WORLD by cooking up LIVERPOOL’S world-famous dish: SCOUSE!! This FEBRUARY 28th gather together, wherever you are – from Los Angeles to Ljubljana, Luanda to Labuanbajo, Lhasa to Lima, Litherland to Lark Lane: if scouse blood runs in your veins or your best mates are from LIVERPOOL, take this opportunity to say it loud and SAY IT PROUD!! BE SCOUSE. EAT SCOUSE!! Everyone’s invited: all you need is a hob, a cooking pot, some meat and/or veg. YES THERE IS VEGETARIAN, VEGAN, KOSHER, HALAL AND RASTAFARIAN SCOUSE! EVERYONE’S INVITED!! Recipes are on the “BE SCOUSE. EAT SCOUSE.” Facebook Group. It’s a great excuse to have your mates around on a cold winter’s night, dish up Liverpool’s famous cuisine and have a few drinks and laughs with the people you love. INVITE ALL YOUR MATES TO JOIN IN THE FUN! Let’s make this thing a goddamn INSTITUTION!!
Video Rating: 4 / 5

A vision of Goat Heaven! Visit our channel for more information. We produce Organic/Halal/Kosher certified and USDA processed goat meat from the clean & sunny, mountain pastures of Northern California. Healthy, Happy, Grass-Fed, Pasture-Grazed, All-Natural, Clean Meat. We also produce top quality Boer breeder bucks & does. We also do contract forest fire fuels reduction with partners, their goats, and low-impact machinery.
Video Rating: 5 / 5

Meat Processing Industry to Promote the Progress in Sensible Way

by Route79

The meat packing industry handles the slaughtering, processing and distribution of animals such as cattle, pigs, sheep and other livestock. The industry is primarily focused on producing meat for human consumption, but it also yields a variety of by-products including hides, feathers, dried blood, and, through the process of rendering, fat such as tallow and protein meals such as meat & bone meal.

In the U.S. and some other countries, the facility where the meat packing is done is called a meat packing plant; in New Zealand, where most of the products are exported, it is called a freezing works. An abattoir is a place where animals are slaughtered for food. The meat packing industry grew with the construction of the railroads and methods of refrigeration. Railroads made possible the transport of stock to central points for processing, and the transport of products throughout the nation.

Mid-century restructuring by the industry of the stockyards, slaughterhouses and processing led to relocating facilities closer to cattle feedlots and swine production facilities, to more rural areas, as transportation shifted from rail to truck. It has been difficult for labor to organize in such locations. In addition, the number of jobs fell sharply through technology and other changes. The meat packing industry has made many improvements since the early 1900s; extensive changes in the industry since the late 20th century have caused new labor issues to arise. Today, the rate of injury in the meat packing industry is three times that of private industry overall.

Canada’s slaughtering and meat-processing sector comprises livestock slaughter and carcass dressing, secondary processors who manufacture and package meat products for retail sale, and purveyors that prepare portion-ready cuts for hotel, restaurant and institutional food service. Products include fresh, chilled or frozen meats; cured meats; fresh and cooked sausage; canned meat preparations; animal oils and fats; and tank-house products such as bone and meat meal.

Meat processing has always been among Canada’s most regulated industries. The Superior Council of New France established regulations in 1706 to control the sale of meat in different seasons and required that butchers advise a colonial official prior to the slaughter of a food animal. Inspection was required to ensure that the animal was healthy and that its meat would be fit for sale. By 1805, Lower Canada had passed an Act to Regulate the Curing, Packing and Inspection of Beef and Pork. This legislation specified the weight and quality of meat cuts included in the pack, the quality of the barrels, and the amount of preservative required in the pickle.

In the early nineteenth century most meat originated with farm slaughter and village butchers, but meatpacking for export and to provision ships was becoming appreciable. By the 1850s production scale began to increase and butcher craftsmen established retail enterprises and meat-packing concerns to exploit the British bacon market. Hogs were slaughtered, the carcasses were dressed, and red meat was cured and packed in barrels filled with brine during the winter months.

As meat processing industrialized, hundreds of the smallest butcher firms were absorbed by larger enterprises, which sought out international markets for their meat exports. By 1900 only 57 packing facilities remained, but over the preceding decade capital investment more than doubled, employment jumped from 1,700 to 2,400, and sales climbed to a new peak of .2 million. The last decade of the nineteenth century saw beef processing grow to opponent pork.

The development of industrial meat packing in the American Midwest during the 1870s influenced meat processing in Canada. A growing railway network enabled the procurement of livestock from a vast hinterland and the distribution of chilled meat using reefer cars. Meat processing grew rapidly during World War I and many packers earned windfall profits. But the industry was left with surplus capacity in the 1920s, which prompted the withdrawal of several large American meat packers from the Canadian market and the creation of Canada Packers.

When a large group of cattle is ready for sale, their owner obtains bids from meat packers. A packing company buyer visits the feedlot and looks over the cows before making his bid. The owner makes sure the price is satisfactory by listening to market reports on the radio and getting bids from other meat-packers. When the owner and packing company agree upon a price, the cattle is shipped to the company’s plant.

Most meat-packing plants are located near the source of cattle. The largest plants are located in Kansas and Nebraska, where most cows are bred and raised. Most cows are, therefore, transported to the plants by truck or rail. When a cow arrives at the meat-packing plant, it is rested and watered before inspection by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). They want to make sure the cows are healthy and do not have any health problems that could taint the meat. The goals of killing and taking apart cattle are to slaughter each animal humanely, efficiently, and hygienically. The treatment of the animals before slaughter and the hygiene of the meat after slaughter is closely monitored by the USDA.

Meat goes through more than 25 processes before it is ready to be sold to a butcher or supermarket. These processes are carried out very quickly by skilled workers. Some cattle plants can slaughter up to 150 cows in one hour. First, a cow is confined in a small pen and made unconscious by a mechanical stunner. Workers then kill the cow by shooting it in the head. They suspend the carcass of the dead cow from an overhead rail for the dressing processes. In dressing, workers bleed the cow and remove its hide and appendages. A fine mist of an acidic solution, usually vinegar and water, as well as an alkaline solution called tri-sodium phosphate (TSP) are sprayed on the carcass after the hide is removed. This process prevents certain bacteria from attaching to the outside of the carcass.

National Beef Packing Company is one of the largest beef processing companies in the United States, processing and marketing fresh beef and beef by-products across the U.S. and internationally. Their processing facilities in Dodge City, Kansas and Liberal, Kansas along with our Brawley, California facility provides beef products to retailers, food service providers, distributors and further processors. This company also provides further processed and packaged meat for a broad spectrum of customer needs and specifications. We continue to develop core capabilities and drive value for the products we deliver to the marketplace.

Find More Halal Meat Cooking Articles

Jhatka or Halal: What is Meat ? Meat Eating in Sikhism – Part 6

Recomended to Listen these first: Part 1 – www.youtube.com Part 2 – www.youtube.com Part 3 – www.youtube.com

Abrar Zaman Khan with punjabi friends buy a lamb for cooking halal meat in vitoria (spain)
Video Rating: 5 / 5

Halal Meat in Canadian Retail

Halal Meat in Canadian Retail – Documentary by 360 Vision Continue reading…