Qurbani scam
“Your butcher or wholesaler may give you excuses why they cannot give you a carcass label but don’t accept it.”
A highly-experienced meat boss from within halal industry has slammed the methodology applied for the animal slaughter ritual during Eid-ul-Adha in Britain, in which over 2.5 million Qurbani’s (slaughter of sheep, goats or cows) take place.
Abattoir boss Naved Syed, who has worked in the lamb and mutton meat sector for over 20-years says that British Muslims need to wise up to zibah (halal slaughter) processes for the Muslim ritual of Qurbani.
He states that that “almost 50 per cent” of the meat from British slaughterhouses is being passed off to unsuspecting customers as Qurbani meat has actually been slaughtered prior to the offering of Eid prayers on the day.
Eid-ul-Adha (festival of sacrifice) is one of the two most important festivals in the Muslim calendar. It marks Prophet Ibrahim’s ultimate devotion to God where he was asked to sacrifice his son Isaac – a story that is also narrated in the Jewish Torah and Christian Old Testament.
Today, the story is commemorated by the sacrifice of a sheep, goat, cow or camel whose meat is shared in three portions among friends, family and the poor. The ritual takes place the day following the Hajj pilgrimage in the holy city of Mecca, for which over two million Muslims congregate each year.
Syed, whose abattoir has been accredited with a Grade AA status from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) for almost a decade, claims that almost half the slaughter carried out in Britain for the festival is a scam.
The problem for Qurbani’s that are performed here in UK is that they are not genuine – about 50% of the qurbani that are performed here are fake,” reveals Syed.
The problem for Qurbani’s that are performed here in UK is that they are not genuine – about 50% of the qurbani that are performed here are fake,” reveals Syed.
“Qurbani can be performed at any halal slaughterhouse and only on the day of Eid-ul-Adha and not before Eid-ul-Adha prayer has been performed,” he adds.
“The main criteria is that the Muslim slaughterman must read his Eid prayer before he can start the sacrifice/zibah for Qurbani.
“It’s shocking how many butchers and wholesalers are scamming their unsuspecting customers, passing off pre-slaughtered meat as Qurbani.”
Syed advises that people can spot a “fake or scam” sacrifice by demanding to see the carcass label for the animal they have purchased from the butcher or wholesaler. Every animal is required to have this tag by UK law before it can leave the slaughterhouse.
“The carcass tag gives you information on which abattoir performed the Qurbani (it will have it’s ECC number), it will give you the date, time, type of animal, where the animal came from and the true weight of your Qurbani,” Syed recommends.
“Your butcher or wholesaler may give you excuses why they cannot give you a carcass label but don’t accept it – they are legally bound to show the label. If they refuse, you can report them to your local Environmental Health Officer or the Trading Standards.”
