By South China Morning Post | Created at 2025-01-15 07:41:34 | Updated at 2025-01-15 12:01:36
4 hours ago
The discovery of a ham sandwich with a fake halal label at a Malaysian convenience store has revealed deeper divisions in the Muslim-majority country, where debates over dietary standards often intertwine with sensitive issues of race, faith and culture.
The latest controversy erupted after a KK Super Mart convenience store on Universiti Malaya’s campus was found selling ham and cheese sandwiches with a fake halal logo. The issue was first brought to light by a university student who questioned the product’s halal label on social media.
Malaysia’s Department of Islamic Development (Jakim), which oversees the halal certification process, released a statement on Friday saying the company that produced the sandwich did not have an official halal certification licence and their use of the label violated trade laws.
Politicians from Umno, a Malay nationalist party, quickly seized on the sandwich issue, accusing the chain of “belittling Islam”.
“Since when is ham considered halal, and how did this product obtain halal certification?” demanded Umno youth chief Akmal Saleh on Sunday.
Ham traditionally refers to cured pork but can also describe other forms of processed meats made from turkey or chicken, which are usually explicitly labelled to differentiate them from pork-based products. Authorities have not disclosed whether the ham in the sandwich that sparked the controversy was pork-based.
