Boleh terjemahkan dlm BM tak? nak share dgn anak² ----- Original Message ----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: Ikhwanul Muslimun Sent: Thursday, July 26, 2007 1:48 PM Subject: Help Palestine [hidayahnet] Biskut Oreo Tak Halal ? --Syariah Panel PPIM
----- Forwarded Message ---- From: thunder cat <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Wednesday, 25 July 2007 11:06:16 LANJUTAN ISU OREO-OREO HARAM! USA & EUROPEAN COUNTRIES BANNED ON OREO COOKIES CONSUMPTION GOOD REASONS WHY MUSLIMS IN MALAYSIA SHOULD AVOID EATING OREO BISCUITS BY GHANY AOUESKHANOV On the 21st June 2007 the Syariah Panel of PPIM wrote a letter to Diethelm Malaysia Sdn Bhd, the exclusive Malaysian distributor of Kraft Foods Inc. with regard to the quality of Oreo biscuits. Our questions to the second largest food and beverage manufacturer in the world were : Does Oreo contain hydrogenated oil (trans fat)? What oil is used in manufacturing Oreo and where does it come from? Does Oreo contain genetically modified ingredients (GMO)? Does Oreo contain animal-based ingredients? Diethelm Malaysia couldn't answer our questions - there was simply nobody in the company of 4 persons who knew anything about the quality of Kraft products because, as I was explained by the CEO Mr. Lai Soon, there was no manufacturing facility of Kraft Foods in Malaysia, only a distributing arm. Yet, this "little" firm currently distributes some 65 items of Kraft Foods in the Malaysian market. By the way there is also Kraft Foods Malaysia Sdn Bhd located in the same office with Diethelm and staffed with same 4 persons. I couldn't quite understand what was the difference between the two companies but neither of these clones were able to alley our concerns. So, on the 29th June 2007 Kraft Foods Philippines answered PPIM's inquiry with a Crafty Letter which, if simplified, said: 1. Oreo might contain trans fat. 2. Oreo might contain GMOs. 3. Oreo contains animal ingredients. The question about oil being used in manufacturing Oreo biscuits was completely ignored! Let us see what does this answer means to us, Oreo lovers. 1. Hydrogenated oils (trans fats) are vegetable fats and oils that undergo a process in which hydrogen is added to solidify the oil. Trans fat has been used by food manufacturers for the past 100 years as it helps to cut the cost, increase the shelf-life of the products. The danger of trans fatty acids has been known for more than 30 years among scientists in the US who found out that trans fat elevates blood levels of low density lipoprotein known as "bad" cholesterol while lowers levels of high density lipoprotein or "good" cholesterol thus causing clogging of arteries which leads to heart attack, type 2 diabetes, obesity and cancer. However for decades the medical and food authorities in the US ignored these facts while blaming saturated fat for the dramatic increase of heart-related diseases. Already in 1994 Center for Science in the Public Interest petitioned the FDA to require trans fat labeling on food packages because according to the Center "trans fat caused about 50,000 fatal heart attacks annually". Therefore on January 1, 2006 FDA required compulsory labeling of trans fat, and not just mentioning the presence of trans fats, but listing it in the Nutrition Facts label. It took 12 years for FDA to make a simple decision: allow consumers to make an informed choice on trans fats. Since then many food manufacturers, restaurants including fast food chains declared they would cease the usage of hydrogenated oils. The administration of New York City announced there would be no trans fats in food outlets in the entire city by the mid 2008. In the light of aforesaid tendency it is a shame for such a famous company like Kraft to still continue promising to resolve the "trans fat problem"; this is despite the fact Kraft Foods was sued by an American consumer over trans fats in Oreo biscuits 4 years ago. In their letter to PPIM Kraft mentions 3 times that "their ultimate goal was to reduce or eliminate trans fat" . So it is still not clear what is the ultimate goal of Kraft Foods: reduce or eliminate?? The difference between the two is infinite. Yes, there are small amounts of trans fat in butter, meat and dairy products which is not the point of consumers' concern. We, Muslim consumers, demand the artificial trans fat found exclusively in partially hydrogenated oil to be totally eliminated from food products. There is plenty of trans-free oil alternatives, especially palm oil - it has natural semi-solid consistency - which is easily available in the South-East Asian region. Instead, Kraft Foods prefers hydrogenated soybean oil coming from the US where most of the crops are GMO. In their letter Krafts Food asserts that Oreo biscuits contain a small amount of trans fats which is "insignificant according to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)". Kraft Foods is a 100 years old multinational corporation, they must know by now that reference to FDA's "safe levels" is not valid in the eyes of any serious consumer union. Even in the US itself there are a few thinking creatures who believe in the integrity of this institution. As the US Congressman and medical doctor Ron Paul said, FDA is a tool of drug and food conglomerates. But ethical and health-conscious consumers do trust the independent and honest scientists whose opinions are based on factual findings and long-term studies. They say: "The safe level of trans fat is zero level. Consumers don't need them at all in their food". Even report of National Academy of Science's Institute of Medicine released in 2002 - a mainstream medical establishment - concluded there could be determined no safe level for consumption of trans fats. 2. Kraft Foods says in its letter: "We have no safety concerns with biotech (Genetically Modified) crops currently in the market". This is arrogant and malicious statement; it shows Kraft has no respect to its consumers. Moreover it is irresponsible. No safety testing has ever been done on GMOs because in 1992, when GMO program began in the US, FDA determined that GE foods were "the same as or substantially similar to substances commonly found in food". Majority of Americans are kept in darkness about GMO but of course not all. A renowned American doctor and author of the best-selling book "Total Health Program", Dr Josef Mercola, said: "Genetic Engineering of crops is a sheer lunacy. Consuming GM foods is like participating in a giant experiment". Although no studies have been done on how GM food consumption affects human body, the animal tests showed the damage to immune system, abnormal changes in the organs, poor brain development, cancer, allergies and even death. The environmental scientists too have blown a whistle: GM crops destroy the natural eco-balance and contaminate non-GMO areas, and if the GE revolution continues there will be soon no organic food available. Worldwide resistance to GM foods is rapidly rising, especially in Europe, many countries require mandatory labeling of GMO. In 2002 Zambia refused GM maize in food aid despite the threat of famine. 3. Kraft Foods admits that some Oreo biscuits sold in Malaysia might contain ingredients derived from animal material; the ingredients likely to be found in Oreo biscuits are: milk powder, whey powder from cow's milk, eggs. It is well known that milk powder manufacturers add animal fat, especially lard into skimmed milk in order to increase the fatness of the powdered milk. Whey is the watery part of milk which is drained away after cheese has formed into curd; an enzyme called rennet which is derived from slaughtered animal's stomach is used to curd the milk. Both, milk and whey powder are employed in commercial food manufacturing to substitute normal full-cream or skimmed milk which is more expensive. But the question of Muslim consumers is: Are the animals, from which rennet and fat is obtained, Halal? According to Consumer Association of Penang, any food which contains whey could be Haram. Taking into account the fact that Oreo biscuits come to Malaysia from China, Indonesia and the US, where production of Halal milk powder and whey is rather limited, the Halal status of Oreo biscuits is highly questionable. 4. The most disturbing point of Kraft Foods' letter to PPIM is their silence on our question regarding fats and oils used in manufacturing Oreo. We are left to guess: Do Oreo biscuits contain fat and oil of animal origin? Does it come from Halal animals? In biscuit manufacturing there been used a shortening agent, a fat which can be of animal or plant origin; what type of shortening is used in Oreo? If Oreo biscuits were totally free from animal fat then what kind of oil is being used in its manufacturing? Why - after selling Oreo biscuits to Muslim consumers for several decades and knowing that animal fat is the most controversial element in Halal industry - Kraft Foods regional HQ preferred to skip the question? Kraft Foods Malaysian arm, Diethelm, stated that all Oreo biscuits and wafers sold in Malaysia are certified Halal by Majlis Ugama Indonesia (MUI) but couldn't explain though how "Chinese Oreo" were monitored by MUI. Diethelm also admits there might be parallel imports of Oreo (by other unofficial) into the country whose halalness Diethelm, of course, would not guarantee. In view of these considerations Muslim consumers are strongly advised, next time they want to indulge in Oreo biscuits or waffles, to think whether it is worth or not consuming a Mushbooh and unwholesome food.
