Muslim Consumer Group :: Events

 DART’S FOAM PRODUCTS ARE NOT HALAL ACCORDING MCG’S CRITERIA

Dart’s foam products  are not Halal according to following reasons:

1. Dart Container Corporation is refused to provide guarantee that Zink Stearate applied at the molding is free from pork fat.

2. Dart Container Corporation has provided an e-mail indicating cross contamination of beef tallow with pork fat at their supplier plant.

3. Dart Container Corporation has provided a letter title " Position statement on Zinc Stearate on their Polystyrene Products" which clearly indicate that they use of animal fat or tallow and do not provide any guarantee from cross contamination of pork fat.

Here are the letter and e-mails:

Position of Zink Stearate‏  



Dear Mr Ahmed:



We have been in communication with our 



supplier of zinc stearate, and he assures us

that in their manufacture of this additive they

specify that their source of stearic acid, from

which they make zinc stearate, must have



a ’tallow’ basis and not a ’lard’ basis, which

means that it is obtained from cattle and

sheep, and not from pigs. They did give us the

caveat that the original company who renders

the fat may not have used meticulous



procedures in place for cleaning a vessel or

process piping when converting from lard raw

material to tallow, so that there exists a slight

possibility of some minor contamination of the

product in changing from one source to



another. We hope this helps.

Again, thank you for your support of our

products.



Sincerely,



Don Anderson

Analsis:

Dart Container Corporation suppliers has a

problem of sepearting the pork fat based

Stearic acid VS beef fat based stearic acid

because both are made on same line. There is

cross contamination of pork fat in beef fat.

It means the supplier of Dart and Dart

corporation both can not give guarantee in

writing that Stearic acid and Zink Stearate

which is made from non zabiha beef fat is pork

fat free because both are made on same line.

There is always possibility of mixing pork fat

with beef fat.

Win Cups company wrote us that their foam

products free from animal fat. So It is preferred

to buy Win Cups against Dart’s foam products.

Dear Mr Ahmed:

Thank you for your request for clarification of the Dart Position Statement on Zinc Stearate. Dart purchases Zinc Stearate in the marketplace and, unfortunately, we are unable to be more specific than what we have stated in our position statement. Zinc stearate is, ultimately, a chemical but if there are questions regarding it’s use as a releasing agent, we suggest you seek guidance from your own religious leader. For your information, we have attached another copy of the Dart position statement.

Sincerely,

Don Anderson

Position Statement on Zinc Stearate and the Composition of Dart Polystyrene Products

Dart Container Corporation has a keen interest in providing safe and sanitary polystyrene products (e.g., foam cups and containers) for food and beverage service. With this in mind, we have the following comments relating to the composition of our products:

1. Dart products conform to the rigorous standards of the Federal Food and Drug Administration as found in Title 21 of the Code of Federal Regulations. This conformity applies not only to major components, but also to additives and processing aids.

2. Dart’s manufacturing practices are directed toward strict preservation of the sanitary nature of our products.

3. Dart does not currently use post-consumer recycled materials in our products.

4. With specific respect to the retention of “Kosher” or “Halal” status of foods and beverages served in our polystyrene products, please consider the following:

Dart utilizes processing aids known as “release agents” in the manufacture of our polystyrene products. Release agents are present in minuscule amounts, to allow the product to be “released” from the molds used to form the container. Almost all zinc stearate the release agent used by Dart, and other fatty acid products are ultimately derived from animal fat or “tallow”. We know of no reports indicating detection of these materials in contained food and we cannot test either for their presence nor for the level of that presence. However, our calculations indicate that if all the release agent on the contacting surface of a cup were to migrate to the contained food, the resulting concentration of migrated chemical material within the food would be approximately one part per million. It is important to keep in mind that the use of these additives is not intended as a food, but simply as a processing aid. In adhering to the guidelines in the Code of Federal Regulations, we do not exceed the amount “required to accomplish the intended technical effect.” And, we do not use these materials to enhance such appearance factors as the gloss of the cup or the container surface. Dart participated in a study committee sponsored by the Society of the Plastics Industry (SPI) charged with reviewing the issue of “Kosher” or “Halal” status of food and beverage packaging, and publishing a report. The major conclusion reached in the SPI report is that there is considerable controversy in theological circles as to the effect on Kosher status of foods and beverages contained in polystyrene foodservice products. One school of thought holds that the process of obtaining these products, because of its high temperature and purification steps, in effect “denatures” them and removes them from the class of  being “food”; therefore, they should be considered as just another chemical. The other school of thought does not accept this argument of denaturing and further takes the position that the presence of even small amounts of tallow-derived processing aids causes contained foods to lose Kosher status. Given the current difference in theological opinion, we suggest you seek guidance on this issue from your own religious leader. The full SPI report, “An Introduction to the Role of Packaging in the World of Kashrus” can be obtained from SPI at (202) 974-5200.