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IKEA: We ensure our food is halal

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KUALA LUMPUR, Wed. - IKEA Retail Malaysia has taken stringent measures to

ensure that food sold in its restaurant and cafe complies with the

Government's strict halal manufacturing regulations.

Asia's largest furniture retail store closed its restaurant and cafe

last week for ritual cleansing after it was told by the religious

authorities to stop selling sausages suspected to be non-halal.

IKEA's food service operations assistant manager, Syahroel Azman

(picture), said the cleansing was done by 80 of the store's Muslim staff

supervised by the Selangor Religious Affairs Department.

"We cleaned all our utensils and cutlery, even the cups, the kitchen

racks and the storage area, which included the walk-in chiller and the

Exit Cafe area. All three of our ovens were also cleaned," he said.

Assistant manager for logistics Roszalena Mashurdin said IKEA's prompt

action was to reassure not only its Muslim customers but also its staff.

"The staff at IKEA's restaurant and cafe are predominantly Muslim and

the company wanted to make sure our religious interests are not

compromised," she said.

IKEA plans to verify and validate the halal certificates of its 11

frozen food suppliers, ensuring they sign a statute of declaration

stating that their current halal certificates were valid.

IKEA general manager Joseph Lau said only after this was done would the

cafe be re-opened, adding that the supply agreement with Muller Sausage

Haus Sdn Bhd, the food company which supplied the suspected sausages to

IKEA, had been terminated.

During a raid last Monday led by the Malaysian Muslim Consumers'

Association, Muller Sausages was one of two food factories found to be

producing sausages using animal-based products for casings.

Even the company's halal certification had also expired.

Copyright 2005

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