Indonesia Threatens Ban on Australian Beef Imports
AUSTRALIA - Indonesia has threatened to ban Australian beef imports amid concerns some of the meat doesn't meet Islamic halal standards.
5 June 2009
1 minute read
A large amount of Australian beef is being held at Jakarta's main port because the country's Islamic Ulema Council, or MUI, has declared it no longer recognises several of Australia's halal certifying bodies, reports
TheAustralian.
Indonesia, which imports an estimated 70,000 tonnes of beef from Australia and New Zealand every year, requires all beef imports to be certified halal.
According to TheAustralian, that means the meat has been taken from cattle slaughtered in a manner deemed suitable for consumption by Muslims.
But it's up to the MUI, Indonesia's top Islamic body, to decide which overseas institutions can certify the meat.
TheCattleSite News Desk
