So This Is Christmas

Merry Christmas is such an infectious feeling I like to feel that way all year around.

So if you are visiting just before Christmas, just after Christmas or even here on Christmas day I am sure you will find something of interest for you and in the spirit of Christmas.

It may be said that Christmas is no longer a celebration but this must be spoken by people that have never had trouble closing their eyes on Christmas Eve in an expectation of what maybe left for them on the carpet under the tree.

I continue to look forward to the surprise on my Grandchild's faces to this day at Christmas events.

Merry Christmas - Merry Christmas - Merry Christmas

Thursday, August 8, 2013

How Meat Is Prepared For Halal Meals

By Andrea Davidson


Many things have been written about the way meat is slaughtered for halal meals, much of it based on speculation and innuendo. Some people have been mislead to believe that somehow the way animals are slaughtered is inhumane or barbaric, whereas in reality it's actually the complete opposite. However, it's very hard to quash untruths if people are not willing to listen to the facts.

These days you cannot go anywhere without encountering halal foods. What many people do not understand is that the meat is prepared to high culinary and hygienic standards, as these are required by Sharia Law. These days the food you get from schools, pubs and hospitals could well be food that has been prepared according to Islamic Law. A great many people think these foods are better than the mainstream products.

The meat that Muslims eat has to be slaughtered in accordance with Islamic law. Additionally, there are also restrictions on the types of meat they are allowed to eat. They cannot, for instance, eat any pork products and the meat they do eat has to be killed in the name of God, and it has to be slaughtered in a certain way.

What needs to be mentioned is the welfare of the animal itself. It's often been said that animals slaughtered in the name of Islam suffer a hideous and cruel death. This cannot be further from the truth. The animal's jugular vein, windpipe and carotid artery are usually slit with one swipe of a knife. This process is similar to the kosher way of killing meat. The animal usually dies instantly and the blood should drain away from the body.

Increasingly, animals are actually stunned with a blow to the head before being slaughtered. The jury is out on this way of killing animals, as no-one really knows for sure if they suffer before dying. Increasingly, as Islamic food becomes part of mainstream food production for companies like KFC, this method is being adopted. Some suggest that 90% of halal meat is now killed this way.

Animals that have been the subject of torture or mistreatment cannot be slaughtered in the name of Allah, and therefore cannot be used as halal food. This one fact alone should let people know that the religion has a caring attitude towards its animals and that the meat is going to be of a high standard. In mainstream food production, animal rights often take a back seat to the need to mass produce food. This can mean that an animal is often the subject of mistreatment before it goes to slaughter.

All halal food is labelled as such. This means that the food you have chosen is within Islamic law as laid down by the Koran. In essence this means that the food has: no blood products in it and no alcohol. Moreover, what many people do not know is that Muslims do not eat birds of prey or carnivorous animals. The word for such foods is haram, which means forbidden.

Halal meals, known as lawful meals, unjustly have a bad reputation. Muslims are taught that animals should be respected and cared for. And, contrary to what some may think, their slaughtering practices are designed to inflict minimum discomfort on the animal. These days the foods can be bought everywhere, including online, at specialist stores and national supermarkets.




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