Challenges to The Halal Industry: A Study on The Legal Acceptance from Some Non-Muslim Countries

Abstract

The Global Halal Industry is under threat and proactive action is needed to arrest the threat. The global halal industry is worth USD2.3-trillion. However, it is poised to decline in the coming years for it faces many challenges. In the West, the issue is not stunning animals before slaughter, in China, the Chinese authorities are battling to erase halal signs displayed on restaurants and in India, it is the Jhatka food industry. Since 2015, the Jhatka industry is gaining support from the majority Hindu population who feel that the minority Muslim population have imposed their religious practices on the majority Hindus, who regard the halal way of slaughtering is haram according to Hindu standards. The objective of the study is to examine all the opposition to the halal industry and suggest ways to minimize the adverse effects of the opposition. This study employed library research methods. Data was gathered mainly through newspaper reports published in the last 5 years. It was analyzed by examining the current trends in the meat industry and the reasons for introducing the Jhatka system of slaughter. It was found out that the Hindu revivalism and the perceived need for a more humane way of slaughtering animals by the West, as the main causes for the opposition. While nothing much can be done to religious claims of Hindus, it is proposed that the Halal industry introduces a mild form of stunning to place the animal in a semi-conscious state before slaughter, while remainly true to Islamic standards.