Please read here for more info. As for me, I don't know what to say. I'm very speechless about this issue.
And this is taken from the Brunei Times:
MoRA: Golden Churn keeps its halal status in Sultanate
Blocks of Golden Churn butter on display in a supermarket in Brunei. Local authorities have maintained the brand's halal status. Picture: BT/Rudolf Portillo
Saturday, August 6, 2011
GOLDEN Churn Creamery Butter will maintain its halal status in Brunei despite Malaysian authorities' plan to withdraw the Australian product's halal certification after a batch tested positive for traces of pig DNA.
A senior religious officer from the Ministry of Religious Affairs' Halal Food Control Division (HFCD) told The Brunei Times yesterday that the test conducted by the ministry on the product last month yielded negative results.
"We sent samples for testing to Makmal Scientific under the Ministry of Health last month. The results turned out negative, so for the moment Golden Churn is still considered halal," said Hj Ali Hassan HjAhmad.
The HFCD officer said halal testing on food products was carried out on a regular basis and these tests adhere to the strictest standards to ensure the safety of food for the general public.
"We also test the products when there had been concerns raised such as the pig DNA claims last month," he added.
The butter product has come under scrutiny by the governments of Brunei and Malaysia after various test results showed conflicting findings. Some batches had tested positive for the pig DNA while others were found negative.
Ad East Marketing, Brunei's sole distributor of Golden Churn Butter, is also adamant that the product ishalal and safe to be consumed by Muslims in the Sultanate.
A source from the company, who only wanted to be named Helen, said they would continue to distribute the product despite the decision from Malaysian authorities.
"I am confident with our local authorities here. Since we are in Brunei, our decisions are based on what we have discovered in Brunei, so we will stick with the announcement," she said. "They can't (the local authorities) be wrong, it's an independent scientific analysis done here in Brunei."
Helen acknowledged that some sectors of the public could be caught in between the conflicting findings with Sarawak being "a close neighbour".
In response, Ad East Marketing has started to give out copies of Brunei HFCD's statement published in a local news report last month to retailers to assure them the product is safe for Muslims.
Helen added that purchase orders from retailers and clients have not been affected.
"I am glad that our local authorities have done the test in Brunei and people will be assured by the local findings," she said.
According to a recent report in Malaysian daily The Star, Assistant Minister in the Sarawak Chief Minister's Department (Islamic Affairs) Datuk Daud Abdul Rahman said Malaysia's Ministry of Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism would revoke the halal certification logo of Golden Churn Creamery Butter.
"The confusion over the matter is now resolved with the decision made by the Islamic Development Department (Jakim) in a meeting on Tuesday that the butter is not halal," he said.
Jakim had initially declared the butter to be halal in early July, according to a report in The Borneo Post, but subsequent tests in a Sarawak laboratory detected traces of pig DNA.
"We cannot pick and choose the samples and the decision is that overall, it is banned for the Muslims," said Datuk Daud Abdul Rahman.
Ballantyne, maker of Golden Churn, said in statement dated August 1 that "there are false claims about our Golden Churn Certified Halal Butter brand originating from West Malaysia".
"I can reassure all our valued customers and consumers that both Ballantyne factories in Australia and New Zealand are certified halal by halal certification authorities for all our butter brands we produce and distribute," said Executive Chairman Andrew Ballantyne.
The golden foil-wrapped butter carries the halal logo and has been certified by the Islamic Coordinating Council of Victoria. The Brunei Times
A senior religious officer from the Ministry of Religious Affairs' Halal Food Control Division (HFCD) told The Brunei Times yesterday that the test conducted by the ministry on the product last month yielded negative results.
"We sent samples for testing to Makmal Scientific under the Ministry of Health last month. The results turned out negative, so for the moment Golden Churn is still considered halal," said Hj Ali Hassan HjAhmad.
The HFCD officer said halal testing on food products was carried out on a regular basis and these tests adhere to the strictest standards to ensure the safety of food for the general public.
"We also test the products when there had been concerns raised such as the pig DNA claims last month," he added.
The butter product has come under scrutiny by the governments of Brunei and Malaysia after various test results showed conflicting findings. Some batches had tested positive for the pig DNA while others were found negative.
Ad East Marketing, Brunei's sole distributor of Golden Churn Butter, is also adamant that the product ishalal and safe to be consumed by Muslims in the Sultanate.
A source from the company, who only wanted to be named Helen, said they would continue to distribute the product despite the decision from Malaysian authorities.
"I am confident with our local authorities here. Since we are in Brunei, our decisions are based on what we have discovered in Brunei, so we will stick with the announcement," she said. "They can't (the local authorities) be wrong, it's an independent scientific analysis done here in Brunei."
Helen acknowledged that some sectors of the public could be caught in between the conflicting findings with Sarawak being "a close neighbour".
In response, Ad East Marketing has started to give out copies of Brunei HFCD's statement published in a local news report last month to retailers to assure them the product is safe for Muslims.
Helen added that purchase orders from retailers and clients have not been affected.
"I am glad that our local authorities have done the test in Brunei and people will be assured by the local findings," she said.
According to a recent report in Malaysian daily The Star, Assistant Minister in the Sarawak Chief Minister's Department (Islamic Affairs) Datuk Daud Abdul Rahman said Malaysia's Ministry of Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism would revoke the halal certification logo of Golden Churn Creamery Butter.
"The confusion over the matter is now resolved with the decision made by the Islamic Development Department (Jakim) in a meeting on Tuesday that the butter is not halal," he said.
Jakim had initially declared the butter to be halal in early July, according to a report in The Borneo Post, but subsequent tests in a Sarawak laboratory detected traces of pig DNA.
"We cannot pick and choose the samples and the decision is that overall, it is banned for the Muslims," said Datuk Daud Abdul Rahman.
Ballantyne, maker of Golden Churn, said in statement dated August 1 that "there are false claims about our Golden Churn Certified Halal Butter brand originating from West Malaysia".
"I can reassure all our valued customers and consumers that both Ballantyne factories in Australia and New Zealand are certified halal by halal certification authorities for all our butter brands we produce and distribute," said Executive Chairman Andrew Ballantyne.
The golden foil-wrapped butter carries the halal logo and has been certified by the Islamic Coordinating Council of Victoria. The Brunei Times
1 comment:
it's only tak halal in sarawak je. kat semenanjung, jakim rules it is halal. tp kat swk, mais pula say otherwise. i pun muslim gak, tp i guna jelah sebab mmg dh pun biasa guna.
Post a Comment