Email from “Pascall” and “The Natural Confectionery Company” about the ‘Halal’ status of their products.

I think the little kid inside of me got extremely excited when I sent/got this email (hints to where this is already going).

Before Ramadan this year, I got the question all the time from people at my university Musallah “man, you’re the expert.  Do you know if Pascall or TNCC jellies and marshmallows are halal?”.  I had no idea, I mean, I used to always abstain being the good kid, sort of assuming that the “gelatine” meant that it was haram and unpermissable to eat.

Image source: http://www.cadbury.com.au/Products/Pascall-Confectionery/Swirls.aspx

So instead of sitting on my butt, I did a little research.

I went online, found nothing.

Dangit.  I realised I had to contact both the companies.. and the wonderful part was Pascall and The Natural Confectionery Company are both linked.

Image source: http://www.beat.net.nz/blog/2013/6/11/the-natural-confectionery-co-launches-outrageous-fun.html

So very happily, I recieved an email from them which read this wonderful statement:

Dear *insertmynamehere*,

Thank you for contacting us regarding the halal status of our candy products.

The following candy products are certified halal by The Australian Federation of Islamic Councils and are suitable for Muslim consumption:

The Natural Confectionery Company:
– Berry Bliss
– Dinosaurs
– Forbidden Fruit – Fruit Fantasy
– Fruits & Cream Mix – Jelly Babies
– Jelly Beans
– Jelly Joiners
– Jungle Jellies
– Lolly Disguises
– Party Mix
– Snakes
– Citrus Slices
– Forest Fruits
– Fruit Salad
– Sour Squirms
– Unbearables
– Strawberries & Cream Bliss
– Tangy Bliss
– Tropic Bliss
– Easter Bunnies (seasonal)
– Merry Blissmas (seasonal)
Pascall:
– Marshmallows
– Marshmallow Swirls
– Marshmallow Minis
– Blackberries & Raspberries
– Colourful Fish
– Eskimos
– Fruit Jubes
– Fruit Jellies
– Giant Jelly Beans
– Jaybees
– Jellies
– Jubes
– Milk Bottles
– Party Mix
– Party Pack
– Party Treats
– Red Frogs
– Wine Gums

We trust this information is of assistance to you and if you need further advice please contact our Consumer Advisory Service on freecall 1800 250 260.

 

Yours sincerely,
KRAFT FOODS LIMITED

Judith Thomas 

Judith Thomas
Consumer Relations Advisor

 

So, there you have it folks!

Make sure that you know to grab yourself a bag when you go to the supermarket next time and indulge in some jelly goodness!

The Troublesome Truth – What is in your Sushi?

It pains me to write this post for all you Muslim brothers and sister out there who are addicted to sushi – myself included.

I remember before the start of this year, my beautiful best friend (who is now a revert to Islam, Mash’ALLAH) was explaining how sushi was her favourite Japanese pastime and we had made plans countlessly to visit a great sushi bar here in Sydney for some authentic style sushi.

Image Source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolelee/1798352472/

Being able to feel the wonders of halal and seafood, I took the liberty of indulging in sushi every now and then.  Reverting to it often as the healthier alternative from my very blatant addiction to home cooked rice and things.

However, it was not until my best friend had converted to Islam and things had started to change.  This lovely best friend of mines speaks fluent Japanese and has lived in Japan herself – so I can assure that the unfortunate truth about this devilishly addictive Japanese cuisine is indeed true.

Unfortunately, I would have to classify sushi under my ‘haram’ or ‘potentially haram’ list.

Why?

Well, it pains me to say this – but some sushi (and I emphasise the word ‘some’ because I can not speak for all restaurants) that can be bought commercially from fast food, restaurants etc contain the substance Mirin: which is a Japanese alcohol or Rice Vinegar: which is made from Chinese Rice Wine.  Both Mirin and Rice Vinegar are added to sushi rice to enhance the flavour of the cuisine and is utilised in some (if not, most) mainstream Japanese/Korean based restaurants.

Again, I can not speak for all restaurants as I am sure they all have alternatives for these ingredients.  We are also very lucky to be living in a 21st century society where we are able to call up/book restaurants in advanced and request strictly about our dietary needs – but being Muslims, we must also consider patience and abstaining from any place that uses alcoholic materials and/or serves both halal/haram meats.

I hope my Nazi posts are not making you feel discouraged about eating out, rather I hope it is encouraging you to learn and replicate your own beautiful foods as you progress and learn more with me as I write these posts for you.

Take care, everyone.

Food Colouring: Halal or Haram?

Image Source: http://www.queen.com.au/pantry-item/pillar-box-red-food-colouring/

The topic of this post stems from a sister willing for me to research into food colourings and the potential harms it had.  I have personally been using mainstream food colourings for a while now – unaware of the nasties that I may find in the product.

Being from Australia, I naturally have advice for products that can be purchased locally here.  As a child, I have thoroughly enjoyed baking in the kitchen, recreating sweet snacks which I was unable to purchase because of them being haram.

For this post, I have looked into the Queen Brand food colourings which you can find in any Woolworths, Coles or IGA supermarket in Australia as these are the most popular and common to almost all of Australians here.

Verdict: Haram or Halal?
Some are “halal” and others are “haram”.

The “Pink Natural Colour”, “Yellow Natural Colour”, “Cochineal Food Colouring” and “Red Colour Extract” (not “Pillar Box Red”) are haram for consumption.  This is because these all contain high concentrations of alcohol.  For the “Cochineal Food Colouring”, it does not only contain alcohol, but ‘Food Colour (120)’ which is created by crushing up insects.  Be cautious for any food products that do contain this food colour in the future.

I have investigated the properties of the each of the Queen Brand food colouring numbers, and have found that fortunately for all you brothers and sisters they are halal.

Also doing the research into these products – I have found out that these products contain a lot of harmful chemicals, some of them being obtained from coal and are known to cause cancer.

Repeated number codes which coexist in these food colourings are:

• Chlorophyll-copper complex (colour) – (141).
• Turmeric Root Extract Powder (100).
• Beetroot Juice Concentrated Powder (162).
• Food colour (124) – Ponceau 4R (colour).
• Preservative (220) – Sulphur dioxide.
• Preservative (211) – Sodium benzoate.
• Food acid (330) – Citric acid.
• Food colour (123) – Amaranth (colour).
• Food colour (102) – Tartrazine (colour).
• Food colour (133) – Brilliant blue FCF (colour).
• Food colour (122) – Azorubine or Carmoisine (colour).

The code we as Muslims should be cautious off from a halal perspective is:

• Food colour (120) – Carmines or Carminic acid or Cochineal (colour).
  • This is because this cochineal food colour is made by the crushing of insects – and insects are not regarded as halal.

For a chart of preservatives/food colours – I recommend you all to refer to these two websites:

Colours 100-181
Food Additives

I hope that this at least provides an insightful and thorough post about food colourings and the essentials that are in food colouring.

We must know that these are artificial colours, and nothing can beat the original colour.