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MCG BOOK

ISBN 13: 978-0-9679902-3-1

"A Comprehensive List of Halal Food Products in US Supermarkets"

Author: Syed Rasheeduddin Ahmed

Publisher: Muslim Consumer Group for Food Products

Pages: 448

Binding: Paperback

$8.00 USD

Fried Beer Battered Fish and Potato Products Contaminate Halal Fried Fish and Halal Fried Potato Products on Production Lines

MCG want to bring the knowledge of contamination of Halal fried fish and potato products with fried Beer Batter fish and potato products.

All fried fish and potato used the same fryer and same vegetable oil. Then the left over oil is recycled and when it contaminated with beer then there is no way of separating beer from oil.

McCain Foods:

McCain has Halal certified frozen potato products from a Halal certifying organization.  But those Halal certified potato products are contaminated with Beer in Beer Batter Potato products. Here is the e-mail from McCain Foods:

" Dear Rasheed,

Thank you for contacting the Consumer Affairs Group at McCain Foods USA, Inc.

We are pleased to learn of your interest in our McCain frozen potatoes.  It is always nice to hear from consumers like you who take the time to contact our company when you have a comment or question regarding our product.

The oil used to manufacture the Beer Battered Fries is re-circulated and could be used on multiple production lines for multiple products.

Thank you for your interest; please feel free to contact us at any time in the future.

Cordially,

McCain Consumer Response Group"

Batter and Breaded Fish Products:

MCG advises Muslim consumers to avoid consuming those brands who make Beer Batter fried fish and potato products. Also go to their websites of those brands who do not sell the fried Beer Batter fish and potato products to make sure they do not markets the fried Beer Batter fish and potato products in some other part of the country.

Ore-Ida Brand:

Ore-Ida brand do not make fried Beer Batter potato products according to the list of products on their website.

Gorton Brand:

Gorton brand has both fried Beer Batter Fish and other batter fried fish. But they also marketed Grilled Fish Products and Baked Fish products which are not contaminated with fried Beer Batter Fish products.

Van De Kamp's Brand:

Van De Kamp's brand is marketing fried Beer Batter Fish and other fries fish products. They also have baked and grilled fish which do not contaminated with fried Beer Batter fish.

Red Lobster Restaurants:

MCG is educating Muslims not to eat fried fish at Red Lobster because they also provide Fried Beer Batter Fish. The broiled and grilled fish are Halal only if they use butter, black pepper, salt on broiled or grilled fish. The Sauces used on broiled or grilled fish are not Halal.

Grilled and Baked Fish Products:

These products are not contaminated with fried Beer Batter Fish products.

Food Products having Kosher symbols like OU, Circle K, KD, Kuf K, CRC and V are not always Halal    

The Kosher Certified food products are not considered Halal if they contain one of the following ingredient (based on MCG Halal criteria):

}  (1) Gelatin (2) Kosher Gelatin (3) L-Cysteine made from human hair or chicken or duck feathers (4) Wine (5) Liquor (6) Beer batter (7) Rum flavor (8) Ethyl Alcohol or ethanol as a main ingredient (9) Cochineal or Carmine (10) Naturally Brewed Soy Sauce (11) Brewer’s Yeast Extract from byproduct of beer making  (12) Nucleotides (13) Vanilla Extract (14) Wine Vinegar (15) If ethyl alcohol is used as a solvent in natural and artificial flavors (16) Confectionary Glaze or Resinous Glaze (17) Torula Yeast grown on alcohol.

 HOW TO PHRASE YOUR QUESTION ABOUT ALCOHOL IN FLAVOR OF A FOOD PRODUCT

The question about alcohol in flavor is a tricky one because it is a hidden ingredient of the flavor. If you ask alcohol question to non technical consumer department person of a food company, first they look at the ingredients list of the food product and will find no alcohol is mentioned. Then they will say we do not use alcohol in our products because they do not know the alcohol is a hidden ingredient of the flavor. We request Muslim consumers to use the following phrase when asking or writing the question to consumer department of any food company regarding the presence or absence of alcohol in the flavor of a food product.

" is alcohol used as a solvent in flavor; alcohol is a hidden ingredient or processing aid ingredient of a flavor, it will not appear in the ingredients statement. The knowledge of presence or absence of alcohol in flavor is only known to your QA or Technical service department because they have access to the specification of flavors. In the specification of flavor, your flavor supplier has written  the name of solvent or carrier used in that particular flavor. So please request your QA or Technical service department to find out whether alcohol was used or not in the flavor as a solvent. The consumer department can not answer this question because they do not have access to specification of ingredients".

MUSLIM CONSUMER GROUP FOR FOOD PRODUCTS USA AND CANADA

Muslim Consumer Group for Food Products is a non-profit, non-political and Islamic scientific organization, incorporated in 1993 as a Halal foods educational and Halal certification organization for Muslims consumers and food industry. Muslim consumers worldwide in over 122 countries logged in to our web site for information on Halal food products and food ingredients. Muslim Consumer Group provides services that benefits Muslims.

"IN THE NAME OF ALLAH, THE MOST GRACIOUS, THE MOST MERCIFUL

"Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds (mankind, Jinns and all that exist). The Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Master of Day of Judgment. You (Alone) we worship, and You (Alone) we ask for help (for each and everything). Guide us to the Straight Way. The way of those on whom You have bestowed Your Grace, not (the way) of those who earned Your Anger, nor of those who went astray. (Quran, Sure Fateha)" 

All Batter and Breaded frozen fish products are fried in freyer but Broiled, Grilled and baked fish are not fried products.

HALAL STATUS SYMBOLS

 Halal    Not Halal    Mushbooh or Unknown    Halal if no alcohol is used in flavor    MCG Certified Halal

MCG'S HALAL CERTIFICATION PROCEDURE:

Please fill out the application form from site or obtained through e-mail or fax.

Please click here for Certification Procedure

If your products pass the Halal requirements then signing the contract including number of inspection per year, record keeping, number of products to be Halal certified and service fees for Halal certification.

MCG'S HALAL REQUIREMENTS:

Raw material, processing aid ingredients, processing, sanitation chemicals and packaging should meet the Islamic dietary requirements.

MCG will not consider a natural or artificial flavor as Halal if ethyl alcohol is used as a solvent or carrier and if the flavoring ingredients are not from Halal source.