Halal claims exposed: Testing Canada’s fast-food chains | Marketplace

00:21:14
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsawEaYleWQhttps

摘要

TLDRThe video investigates the halal food certification process in Canada, highlighting the confusion and lack of transparency that consumers face in trusting the authenticity of halal claims by popular fast-food chains including KFC, Popeyes, Mary Brown's, Osmow's, and Boston Pizza. It reveals that many restaurants claim halal certification without proper credentials, using misleading certificates intended for suppliers, not the restaurants themselves. The video contrasts Canada's unregulated halal certification environment with New Jersey's regulated system, where businesses must disclose their halal practices clearly. It suggests the need for federal oversight and regulation of halal certifiers in Canada to protect consumer trust.

心得

  • 🔍 Investigates halal certification in Canada.
  • 🍔 Popular fast-food chains like KFC and Popeyes are scrutinized.
  • ⚖️ Consumer trust in halal claims is questioned.
  • 📜 Certification discrepancies and misleading practices are highlighted.
  • 🛡️ New Jersey's regulated halal system is presented as a model.
  • 🇨🇦 Canada's lack of halal regulation raises concerns.
  • 🔖 Call for clear, federally regulated certification standards.
  • 📊 Highlights the billion-dollar halal market in Canada.
  • ⏳ Identifies issues with expired halal certificates.
  • 🤝 Emphasizes the need for transparent processes to protect consumers.

时间轴

  • 00:00:00 - 00:05:00

    The video investigates the halal food industry in Canada, highlighting the growing demand due to immigration and the complexities surrounding halal certification. It explains the basics of halal requirements, including humane slaughter and prevention of cross-contamination with non-halal products. The video follows a couple promoting halal venues and their challenges in verifying the halal status of food in restaurants. They highlight risks to their faith if halal standards aren't met. The investigation focuses on the authenticity of halal claims in fast food chains using a checklist to assess whether items are truly halal-certified.

  • 00:05:00 - 00:10:00

    The investigation finds discrepancies between restaurants' claims and their actual halal certification. Certificates shown by some restaurants are for meat suppliers and not valid for restaurant use, exemplifying a lack of transparency within the halal industry. Interviews with halal certification authorities reveal that many restaurants misuse supplier certificates to falsely claim halal certification. The video illustrates the confusion and potential misleading of consumers. It poses questions about the varying standards among certification agencies, including differences in certification of meat cut methods, like machine versus hand-cut.

  • 00:10:00 - 00:15:00

    The third section highlights inconsistencies and outdated certificates in fast food chains regarding halal claims. They explore the confusion among consumers due to the lack of regulation on certifiers. The video contrasts Canada's situation with New Jersey, USA, where a Halal Food Consumer Protection Act mandates clear disclosure forms in businesses, providing clarity and assurance for consumers. These forms alleviate confusion, as seen through interviews with local business owners and consumers appreciating transparency. The video suggests benefits of standardized halal disclosures similar to New Jersey's approach.

  • 00:15:00 - 00:21:14

    The conclusion focuses on calls for regulatory changes in Canada to protect halal consumers. Experts advocate for federally regulated certification to ensure consistent standards and transparency, suggesting periodic audits of certifiers. The lack of standardized practices has left consumers confused and misled. Despite requests, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) did not significantly respond. The video ends with the notion that while eating, consumers should conduct their own due diligence and urges the industry to adhere to genuine halal practices, highlighting advocacy for greater oversight and regulation.

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思维导图

视频问答

  • What is the main topic of the video?

    The video investigates the integrity of halal food certification in Canada.

  • What does halal mean?

    Halal means permissible under Islamic guidelines, including how food is prepared.

  • What concerns do consumers have about halal food?

    Consumers question the authenticity of halal certifications and face challenges in trusting the information provided by restaurants.

  • Which fast-food chains were investigated?

    The investigation covered KFC, Popeyes, Mary Brown's, Osmow's, and Boston Pizza.

  • What are some challenges identified in the video?

    Challenges include inconsistent halal information, lack of transparency, and misleading certificates at restaurants.

  • What is the role of halal certifiers in Canada?

    Halal certifiers in Canada provide certificates to ensure that products meet Islamic guidelines, but there is no federal regulation of these certifiers.

  • How does New Jersey handle halal certification differently?

    New Jersey has a Halal Food Consumer Protection Act requiring businesses to display a disclosure form detailing their halal standards.

  • What solution does the video suggest for Canada?

    The video suggests implementing federal regulation for halal certification and clearer transparency for consumers.

  • How much is the halal food industry worth in Canada?

    The halal food industry in Canada generates over a billion dollars in annual spending.

  • What did the investigation reveal about expired certificates?

    The investigation found expired halal certificates at several restaurant locations, adding to consumer confusion.

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    You know what I take in my coffee?
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    It's a medium caramel-caramel.
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    We're wiring up, going undercover,
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    inside some of Canada's most popular fast food chains.
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    We want to know more about some of the hottest items
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    now available on the menu.
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    Halal.
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    [Charlsie] Halal means permissible,
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    food that's prepared according to Islamic guidelines.
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    The CFIA requires any product
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    that's sold as halal to be certified.
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    But are those regulations working well enough
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    for those who eat halal?
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    To find out, we're asking restaurants
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    what they know about the halal food
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    they're selling.
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    [Charlsie] And whether we can really trust
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    the certificates we're being shown.
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    But first...
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    [energetic music playing]
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    ...it's no doubt that halal is gaining in popularity.
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    It needs to be halal standards.
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    [Charlsie] At this halal Expo, just outside of Toronto,
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    we're taking in everything halal.
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    From meat, to baked goods, even spices.
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    I think that's it, halal right there.
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    The halal food industry is booming.
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    With Canadians spending over a billion dollars a year
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    on halal food products.
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    -It's growing. -Yeah?
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    It's growing fast.
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    It's growing day by day, as you know,
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    there are half a million immigrants coming in,
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    and most of them are looking for halal products,
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    in particular.
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    [Charlsie] Halal certified.
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    For meat, like chicken, beef or lamb,
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    to be considered halal,
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    the animal must first be in good health
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    and treated humanely.
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    Then, a prayer is recited
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    before the animal is slaughtered by a Muslim
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    with a swift, deep cut across the throat,
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    done either by hand, with a knife, or with a machine.
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    And that meat cannot come into contact
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    with any non-halal meat,
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    including pork, which is never allowed.
  • 00:02:00
    [hip-hop music playing]
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    So over here, you're going in the Grand Bazaar.
  • 00:02:07
    [Charlsie] The search for halal food starts
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    for Mohamed and Sarah Arfan some ten years ago,
  • 00:02:12
    when they first moved to Canada from Dubai.
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    So we even, as a couple, struggled where do we go out
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    for food and stuff, where do we eat, etc.
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    So that's when this idea hit us that
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    we should do something for the community.
  • 00:02:24
    [Charlsie] Now they share the spots they find
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    on their YouTube channel, IN2SPICES.
  • 00:02:29
    We are once again back
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    at the Ridgeway Plaza in Mississauga.
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    [Charlsie] Thousands of followers
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    tune in every week.
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    Grilled to perfection.
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    [Charlsie] When they dine out, they have a list of questions
  • 00:02:39
    about the halal food restaurants are serving.
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    So what we're looking for is, "Is the meat halal?"
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    "Can we see the certificate?"
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    "Is there any cross-contamination
  • 00:02:48
    between any non-halal meat and the halal meat?"
  • 00:02:51
    [Charlsie] If they don't get the answers they're looking for,
  • 00:02:54
    they don't eat there.
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    What's at risk
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    if the information you get is wrong?
  • 00:03:00
    At the end of the day,
  • 00:03:01
    it affects our faith and our belief.
  • 00:03:02
    So we feel hurt.
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    It's like sabotaging your faith.
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    [Charlsie] So, we want to see
  • 00:03:09
    if we can get clear answers from restaurants.
  • 00:03:12
    And with the help of experts, we come up with a checklist.
  • 00:03:15
    We're asking, "Is everything halal?"
  • 00:03:28
    We're visiting KFC,
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    Popeyes, Mary Brown's,
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    Osmow's, and Boston Pizza.
  • 00:03:39
    [Charlsie] Visiting two locations of each
  • 00:03:42
    with a colleague who eats halal.
  • 00:03:44
    First up, is everything on the menu halal?
  • 00:03:50
    Five of the restaurant locations we visit
  • 00:03:53
    can't give us a straight answer,
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    including this Mary Brown's.
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    [Charlsie] But then...
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    [Charlsie] The employee isn't quite clear
  • 00:04:20
    on what halal is.
  • 00:04:24
    It's the same thing that we go through.
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    Is it just the meat or is it like the cheese product
  • 00:04:29
    or the dairy product?
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    Because certain times they would add gelatin in it,
  • 00:04:33
    and most of us know that the gelatin
  • 00:04:35
    is coming from a fat source of a non-halal product
  • 00:04:39
    like a pork or pig.
  • 00:04:41
    So in order for a restaurant to be entirely halal,
  • 00:04:44
    all the boxes need to be checked?
  • 00:04:46
    All the boxes need to be checked.
  • 00:04:47
    [Charlsie] Next up, are any
  • 00:04:49
    of the ten restaurants we're visiting certified?
  • 00:04:52
    At Popeyes, we're told they are.
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    [Charlsie] Seems promising at first.
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    But then, when we asked to see the certificate...
  • 00:05:11
    ...we're shown a certificate
  • 00:05:12
    for a meat supplier, not the restaurant.
  • 00:05:15
    And right there, on the certificate,
  • 00:05:18
    it says "Not for restaurant's use."
  • 00:05:21
    We're talking today about transparency
  • 00:05:24
    within the halal industry.
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    [Charlsie] As the head of the halal Monitoring Authority,
  • 00:05:29
    the HMA, Imam Omar Subedar runs
  • 00:05:32
    one of the most well-known certifying agencies in Canada.
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    We show him our hidden camera findings.
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    That is common, unfortunately.
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    That certificate has been issued to one company,
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    but restaurants are taking the liberty
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    to go ahead and display that
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    as if they are certified.
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    [Charlsie] Unless each ingredient
  • 00:05:52
    and meat source has been checked,
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    Subedar says
  • 00:05:56
    "Restaurants should not claim to be certified."
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    I would be very disappointed
  • 00:06:00
    if I was the customer of that restaurant
  • 00:06:04
    and having to find out that I am being misled.
  • 00:06:07
    [Charlsie] But Popeyes isn't the only one.
  • 00:06:09
    Over at this Mary Brown's,
  • 00:06:11
    the certificates are also for the meat suppliers,
  • 00:06:14
    not the restaurant.
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    But then...
  • 00:06:29
    [Charlsie] ...the employee suggests
  • 00:06:31
    the certificate on the wall
  • 00:06:33
    means the HMA has checked their restaurant.
  • 00:06:37
    Wow, that's tremendously disingenuous.
  • 00:06:41
    I mean, he's openly admitting that the chicken is coming
  • 00:06:43
    from somewhere else, but the end consumer
  • 00:06:45
    is not going to know that unless they ask, like you did.
  • 00:06:49
    So, yeah, it's very disappointing.
  • 00:06:52
    Just to be clear, does your organization
  • 00:06:54
    certify that Mary Brown's location?
  • 00:06:56
    We certify no Mary Brown's location,
  • 00:06:58
    not even a single one.
  • 00:06:59
    We have no connection with Mary Brown's.
  • 00:07:02
    [Charlsie] Six of the ten restaurant locations
  • 00:07:04
    told us they were certified,
  • 00:07:06
    when in fact, none of them are.
  • 00:07:08
    Next up, where do they get their meat from?
  • 00:07:11
    Over at KFC,
  • 00:07:13
    we're told they get all their chicken
  • 00:07:14
    from Maple Lodge,
  • 00:07:16
    a major manufacturer of halal meat.
  • 00:07:19
    But when we asked to see the certificate,
  • 00:07:22
    it's for another supplier.
  • 00:07:39
    [Charlsie] Things aren't any clearer
  • 00:07:40
    at another KFC location.
  • 00:07:49
    But once again, the certificate says otherwise.
  • 00:08:02
    The inconsistency continues
  • 00:08:05
    at this Mary Brown's in Toronto,
  • 00:08:08
    where we're shown two certificates for suppliers,
  • 00:08:11
    not the restaurant itself.
  • 00:08:26
    Mary Brown says that your HMA certificate
  • 00:08:30
    is where they get their meat from,
  • 00:08:31
    and then they go on to say
  • 00:08:33
    that another certifying agency is certifying your certificate.
  • 00:08:38
    That makes no sense.
  • 00:08:41
    [Charlsie] Confused? Consumers are too.
  • 00:08:44
    While the CFIA says anything that's sold as halal
  • 00:08:47
    has to be certified,
  • 00:08:48
    they don't regulate who can be a certifier.
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    And right now, there are more than
  • 00:08:53
    a dozen different agencies in Canada
  • 00:08:56
    and no agreed upon standards for them to follow.
  • 00:09:00
    With so many certifiers, are there some concerns
  • 00:09:04
    as far as different bodies having different regulations,
  • 00:09:08
    different standards?
  • 00:09:09
    Yeah, definitely, there are concerns.
  • 00:09:12
    The thing is, everyone is going to approach halal
  • 00:09:15
    with a different lens, and that does complicate things,
  • 00:09:18
    not only for the industry, but also for the community.
  • 00:09:22
    One standard that differs between certifiers
  • 00:09:25
    is whether the meat is machine or hand-cut.
  • 00:09:29
    It's one of the most important pieces of information
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    for many Muslim consumers,
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    but it's a distinction
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    that is not required on the certificate,
  • 00:09:39
    which means consumers often have to ask.
  • 00:09:43
    Some people are okay
  • 00:09:44
    eating the machine-slaughtered halal food.
  • 00:09:46
    I would say the gold standard, let's put it that way,
  • 00:09:49
    of halal is zabiha halal.
  • 00:09:50
    And zabiha halal means...
  • 00:09:52
    [both]... hand-slaughtered.
  • 00:09:54
    [Charlsie] So, can the restaurants we visit
  • 00:09:56
    tell us?
  • 00:09:57
    At this KFC, they can't.
  • 00:10:06
    At this Boston Pizza, they can't tell us either.
  • 00:10:17
    Do you think that's something that should be on a certificate?
  • 00:10:19
    [both] It should be.
  • 00:10:21
    So, the simple thing as having two check-boxes,
  • 00:10:23
    machine-slaughtered, hand-slaughtered.
  • 00:10:25
    Tick, there you go, certificate done.
  • 00:10:28
    [Charlsie] Getting the right answers
  • 00:10:29
    isn't so simple at Osmow's either.
  • 00:10:32
    We're shown a certificate for Maple Leaf
  • 00:10:34
    and told the chicken is machine-cut.
  • 00:10:42
    But Maple Leaf's halal products
  • 00:10:44
    are only slaughtered by hand, not machine.
  • 00:10:48
    It seems like they were wrong.
  • 00:10:51
    Unfortunately, they were not giving accurate information.
  • 00:10:55
    [Charlsie] At four of the locations,
  • 00:10:57
    they couldn't tell us the method of slaughter
  • 00:10:59
    or got it wrong.
  • 00:11:01
    And at this Boston Pizza,
  • 00:11:03
    the certificates we were shown expired eight years ago.
  • 00:11:08
    If you saw this, in your experience,
  • 00:11:11
    -what would you have done? -Leave.
  • 00:11:13
    -Leave. Leave. -Just leave.
  • 00:11:15
    Whenever we see the certificate, if it's expired, we back up.
  • 00:11:19
    [Charlsie] In fact, we found
  • 00:11:20
    a total of eight expired certificates
  • 00:11:22
    at three restaurants.
  • 00:11:24
    While there may be some restaurant locations
  • 00:11:27
    serving up the right info,
  • 00:11:29
    our spot-check of ten locations
  • 00:11:31
    left us with a considerable amount of confusion.
  • 00:11:34
    Should any of this be tough to answer?
  • 00:11:36
    -Should any of this be hard? -No, it should not be tough.
  • 00:11:38
    There should be some form of orientation
  • 00:11:40
    that's given to the employees so that they can give
  • 00:11:42
    proper answers to the customer.
  • 00:11:44
    [Charlsie] We want answers, too.
  • 00:11:47
    Osmow's tells us all of their products
  • 00:11:50
    are hand-slaughtered
  • 00:11:51
    and that they will reach out to their certifiers
  • 00:11:54
    to learn more about the process.
  • 00:11:56
    Mary Brown says they will continue
  • 00:11:58
    to educate their front-line staff
  • 00:12:00
    on how to identify halal ingredients with confidence.
  • 00:12:04
    They also say they are committed to transparency.
  • 00:12:08
    Boston Pizza says locations that offer halal
  • 00:12:11
    are required to complete online training
  • 00:12:14
    and that their certificates are regularly updated.
  • 00:12:17
    KFC and Popeyes did not respond
  • 00:12:20
    to our request for comment.
  • 00:12:22
    And would you have eaten at or featured
  • 00:12:24
    any of the places we've shown you?
  • 00:12:26
    No, it is very frustrating
  • 00:12:28
    because you want to walk in to have a nice meal.
  • 00:12:31
    This is the last thing that you need to be worried about.
  • 00:12:37
    [Charlsie] Coming up,
  • 00:12:38
    protecting consumers when the stakes are high.
  • 00:12:41
    There were those that were selling halal
  • 00:12:43
    and it wasn't really halal.
  • 00:12:44
    [Charlsie] We go looking for a better way.
  • 00:12:52
    [Charlsie] This is your Marketplace.
  • 00:12:56
    It's a growing industry across the country
  • 00:12:59
    but our investigation reveals
  • 00:13:01
    an unregulated halal certification system
  • 00:13:04
    that's leaving consumers questioning
  • 00:13:07
    what they're getting.
  • 00:13:08
    Wow, that's tremendously disingenuous.
  • 00:13:14
    [Charlsie] So, we're in Newark, New Jersey,
  • 00:13:16
    where halal transparency is the law.
  • 00:13:21
    And it has been for more than 20 years,
  • 00:13:24
    with the state's Halal Food Consumer Protection Act.
  • 00:13:27
    -Hi. -Hi, how are you?
  • 00:13:29
    I'm Charlsie, it's so nice to meet you.
  • 00:13:31
    Akbar Salam has owned a halal meat shop
  • 00:13:34
    in Newark for 57 years.
  • 00:13:36
    I'm also going to get some of the beef, thank you.
  • 00:13:38
    Okay.
  • 00:13:39
    [Charlsie] He advocated for the law,
  • 00:13:41
    which was the first of its kind in the United States.
  • 00:13:44
    What was happening at that time
  • 00:13:45
    that you needed that legislation?
  • 00:13:47
    What was happening is, there were those
  • 00:13:49
    that were selling halal and it wasn't really halal.
  • 00:13:52
    Mmm.
  • 00:13:53
    So, therefore, this Consumer Protection Act
  • 00:13:56
    was very, very, very, very important.
  • 00:13:59
    And so, this is your disclosure statement.
  • 00:14:01
    The law requires any business selling halal
  • 00:14:05
    to post a disclosure form for consumers to see.
  • 00:14:08
    So, a couple of examples on here.
  • 00:14:11
    "This establishment sells only halal,
  • 00:14:13
    both halal and non-halal meat."
  • 00:14:16
    Correct, so, therefore,
  • 00:14:17
    the vendor would check off which one applies to him.
  • 00:14:22
    There's also things on here,
  • 00:14:25
    "We do or do not have
  • 00:14:26
    -pork products." -Correct.
  • 00:14:28
    So, this allows people to really clearly see
  • 00:14:31
    what standards this business
  • 00:14:33
    or this establishment is following.
  • 00:14:35
    It gives comfort to the consumer.
  • 00:14:37
    [Charlsie] It also allows the state
  • 00:14:39
    to sanction businesses that don't comply.
  • 00:14:42
    In the past three years, 18 businesses have been fined
  • 00:14:46
    for selling halal food without a disclosure form.
  • 00:14:49
    [energetic music playing]
  • 00:14:51
    It's a game changer.
  • 00:14:52
    [Charlsie] In Jersey City,
  • 00:14:54
    we catch up with Asim Mirza.
  • 00:14:56
    He runs Jersey Halal Spots, a social media account
  • 00:15:00
    that promotes halal restaurants
  • 00:15:01
    for the state's growing Muslim population.
  • 00:15:04
    The demand for halal food is tremendous.
  • 00:15:06
    Now with the disclosure form, now with social media,
  • 00:15:08
    people know very quickly if a restaurant's halal or not.
  • 00:15:11
    And how do you think this information
  • 00:15:13
    and these disclosure forms is working for consumers?
  • 00:15:16
    I think it really helps because it takes kind of
  • 00:15:18
    the guessing out of what's halal and what isn't.
  • 00:15:20
    [Charlsie] Unlike in Canada, there's no guessing game here.
  • 00:15:24
    You're actually going to take me to some restaurants here
  • 00:15:27
    that are halal restaurants and have these disclosure forms?
  • 00:15:30
    Yeah, let's go, let's get some food.
  • 00:15:33
    Here's our first stop of the day, Laree Adda.
  • 00:15:35
    [Charlsie] At this Indian Pakistani restaurant,
  • 00:15:38
    all the meat is halal,
  • 00:15:40
    and that's spelled out on the form
  • 00:15:42
    right behind the counter.
  • 00:15:44
    Shawn Qureshi is the owner.
  • 00:15:46
    When customers come in, are they asking you to see it?
  • 00:15:49
    Do they have questions?
  • 00:15:51
    Yeah, they have some,
  • 00:15:52
    they are asking for the halal food,
  • 00:15:54
    and then I told them there is like halal disclaimer
  • 00:15:57
    they can sit over here, they can see and after that,
  • 00:15:59
    they said it's fine, they can eat over here.
  • 00:16:01
    Like very happy.
  • 00:16:02
    [Charlsie] And over at this Chinese
  • 00:16:04
    halal takeout window...
  • 00:16:06
    Can I see the halal disclosure form, please?
  • 00:16:08
    [Charlsie] ...these customers rely on the disclosure forms.
  • 00:16:11
    It's just like a, I guess, reinforcement, to say,
  • 00:16:15
    like, the place, the restaurant is a safe place to eat,
  • 00:16:17
    so, yeah.
  • 00:16:19
    We prefer the forms, like, because it's visual.
  • 00:16:21
    You don't even have to ask them
  • 00:16:23
    because sometimes the staff doesn't really know what it is.
  • 00:16:26
    It's like a peace of mind.
  • 00:16:27
    In Canada, we don't have a form like this.
  • 00:16:30
    Oftentimes, consumers will go into businesses,
  • 00:16:34
    but they actually can't get the answers
  • 00:16:36
    to some of these questions.
  • 00:16:38
    If you post that your business is halal,
  • 00:16:41
    then you should at least answer all the questions
  • 00:16:45
    that your customer asks you in reference to that.
  • 00:16:49
    So, this is the halal disclosure statement
  • 00:16:53
    that is the law
  • 00:16:55
    -in the state of New Jersey. -Amazing.
  • 00:16:56
    That's wonderful.
  • 00:16:57
    [Charlsie] Back in Canada,
  • 00:16:59
    food vloggers Mohamed and Sarah Arfon
  • 00:17:01
    would love to see the same amount of transparency
  • 00:17:04
    on display at restaurants in New Jersey,
  • 00:17:06
    here at home.
  • 00:17:08
    So, they've got a complete checklist.
  • 00:17:09
    Milk and dairy, the yogurt, your cheese.
  • 00:17:11
    That's what we should have in Canada.
  • 00:17:12
    I don't even have to ask.
  • 00:17:14
    I can get all the information from the form.
  • 00:17:15
    -That's exactly what you need. -It just saves the hassle.
  • 00:17:17
    -It just saves the hassle-- -Of asking again and again.
  • 00:17:20
    It should be as simple as this.
  • 00:17:24
    [Charlsie] Shop owner Ramadan Nagmouche
  • 00:17:26
    has no trouble answering questions
  • 00:17:28
    about the halal he sells.
  • 00:17:31
    This is a supplier you've used for--
  • 00:17:33
    -That's my main one. -And for how long?
  • 00:17:35
    Oh, we've been together maybe for over six years.
  • 00:17:37
    -And so, you know this is halal? -Yes.
  • 00:17:40
    -How do you know? -Oh, yeah, we check around.
  • 00:17:42
    We have somebody who works there.
  • 00:17:44
    [Charlsie] But you won't find a certificate
  • 00:17:46
    here at Mona's Fine Meats in London, Ontario.
  • 00:17:49
    Customers are coming here because they want halal meat.
  • 00:17:53
    Yes, they do.
  • 00:17:54
    Quality, and it's halal,
  • 00:17:56
    and they trust us for the sources.
  • 00:17:58
    [Charlsie] Ramadan was put on a decertified list
  • 00:18:00
    after he stopped paying another certifier
  • 00:18:03
    $350 a month for certification.
  • 00:18:07
    He says it got too expensive and months would go by
  • 00:18:10
    without the certifier coming to check his store.
  • 00:18:13
    Since getting on this decertified list,
  • 00:18:16
    has anything changed with the halal meat
  • 00:18:19
    -that you're bringing in? -Never, no.
  • 00:18:21
    So, it's all the same product?
  • 00:18:22
    [indistinct] supplier before them,
  • 00:18:24
    -after them, same thing. -Okay.
  • 00:18:26
    I never change.
  • 00:18:28
    You just don't have the certificate anymore?
  • 00:18:29
    That's it.
  • 00:18:31
    [Charlsie] Ramadan says he wants more consistency
  • 00:18:34
    and oversight on the certifiers.
  • 00:18:36
    They are regulating us, who's regulating them?
  • 00:18:39
    How often do you go to the slaughterhouses?
  • 00:18:41
    How often do you come to us?
  • 00:18:43
    I'd like to have it, like a government regulation.
  • 00:18:47
    And if it was federally regulated,
  • 00:18:51
    that's a system you would pay for?
  • 00:18:53
    -I would. I'd love to. -You would?
  • 00:18:58
    [Charlsie] When we return, a call for change.
  • 00:19:01
    You'd like to see certifiers, just like yourself,
  • 00:19:04
    federally regulated by the government?
  • 00:19:06
    Oh, I'd love to see that.
  • 00:19:07
    [Charlsie] But will the government listen?
  • 00:19:15
    [Charlsie] This is your Marketplace.
  • 00:19:18
    We've uncovered you can't always trust
  • 00:19:21
    what you're being told when it comes to
  • 00:19:23
    the halal food you're being sold
  • 00:19:25
    at some of Canada's most popular restaurants.
  • 00:19:31
    And that's got some calling for change.
  • 00:19:35
    Why does eating out at a restaurant have to be
  • 00:19:37
    like a root canal treatment to your dentist, right?
  • 00:19:40
    It doesn't need to be.
  • 00:19:41
    [Charlsie] Omar Subedar says
  • 00:19:42
    the current certification system
  • 00:19:44
    needs to be regulated, too.
  • 00:19:46
    You'd like to see certifiers, just like yourselves at the HMA,
  • 00:19:50
    federally regulated by the government?
  • 00:19:52
    Oh, I'd love to see that.
  • 00:19:54
    What kinds of things do you think
  • 00:19:55
    should be happening that aren't now?
  • 00:19:57
    Should they be doing spot-checks like we just did?
  • 00:19:59
    One hundred percent, yeah, they should be.
  • 00:20:01
    Like, all of us should be audited.
  • 00:20:03
    First and foremost, we need to decide
  • 00:20:05
    what the standard is going to be.
  • 00:20:06
    Everyone needs to be aligned with those standards,
  • 00:20:08
    and then there should be periodic audits,
  • 00:20:10
    just like there's audits for everything else, right?
  • 00:20:13
    We asked the CFIA for an interview,
  • 00:20:15
    but they declined.
  • 00:20:17
    In a statement, they did tell us that
  • 00:20:19
    the intent of its certification requirement
  • 00:20:22
    is to provide consumers with information
  • 00:20:25
    so that they can make informed decisions.
  • 00:20:28
    They also say that the responsibility
  • 00:20:30
    falls to the certifiers
  • 00:20:32
    to ensure that religious requirements
  • 00:20:34
    are adhered to.
  • 00:20:36
    In the meantime, Mohammed and Sarah
  • 00:20:39
    have a message for restaurants selling halal.
  • 00:20:41
    It's a big, big industry right now, right?
  • 00:20:44
    Everybody wants to be a part of it.
  • 00:20:46
    But then, you want to be a part of it?
  • 00:20:48
    Do it properly.
  • 00:20:49
    [Charlsie] And until that happens,
  • 00:20:51
    these two have a tip for consumers.
  • 00:20:54
    Until we have, like, a unified solution
  • 00:20:56
    -or the government steps up... -...do your own due diligence.
  • 00:20:59
    Do your own due diligence.
  • 00:21:03
    ♪ ♪
标签
  • Halal certification
  • Canada
  • Fast food chains
  • Consumer trust
  • Islamic guidelines
  • Transparency
  • Regulation
  • New Jersey model
  • Federal oversight
  • Halal industry