One of the standard offerings at any pasar malam is the vadai (or wadeh) stall. The original plain vadai is made of vegetarian ingredients which are permissible for halal consumers to eat as well. However as of late, vadai sellers have been adding chicken and prawn to their vadai. To retain some of their Muslim customers, we’ve seen them adding the Arabic words halal to their banners from no halal-certifying authority, which can mislead customers.On 12 March, Facebook user Shafiee Barahim who is also a member of Halal Cafe and Restaurant SG Facebook Group posted about a vadai stall at a pasar malam near Tampines MRT in the group with the concern of whether the food is really halal.Consumers who are looking for halal food look generally out for a few indicators to know if the food is permissible for their consumption.1. Knowing that the food stall is Halal-certified2. Knowing that the food stall is owned by a Muslim who is able to guarantee the ingredients are halal3. Knowing that the ingredients used to make the food are purely vegetarian with no alcohol includedThe vadai stall did not appear to fall into any of the above generally accepted classifications.
MUIS Halal Enforcement Officers orders stall to cover their generic halal logo
On 12 March, according to the administrator of the Halal Cafe and Restaurant SG Halal Cafe and Restaurant SG Mohd Khair M Noor,
“MUIS Halal Enforcement Officers went on-site to investigate the situation…
The stall concerned has covered the halal logo. The stall is owned and run by non-Muslims with no halal certification from MUIS.
MUIS Officers also found other food stalls within the premises showing the generic halal logo. These food stalls were all NOT MUIS halal certified nor
Muslim-owned. MUIS Enforcement Officers have ordered all these stalls to cover their generic halal logo with immediate effect. Enforcement action would follow suit.”
Kudos to Mr Shafiee Barahim for highlighting issue and to MUIS for their quick action in addressing the stallowners. As consumers we can be more aware not to accept these halal signs with no certification from an authority like MUIS, as an indicator of halal food. Additionally, we can first ask the stall owners if the business are owned by Muslims of if they have a halal certification for them to be able to put up these signs.
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