In what is heralded as a significant milestone for more than 450,000 U.S. Muslims in the Chicago area, the Illinois state senate has unanimously passed the Halal Food Act, a bipartisan initiative sponsored by more than 30 state senators that will make the falsification of information about food products marketed to Muslims a punishable offense under Illinois state law. The act, passed April 10, is an effort to stop the fraudulent mislabeling of non-Halal products as Halal.
Halal products are foods that have been prepared according to Muslim dietary laws.
In addition to regulation of the labeling and marketing of Halal products by grocery retailers, the Illinois act requires farms that raise and process livestock to provide proof of Halal claims in accordance with rules adopted by the state's director of agriculture. Grassroots efforts are the bedrock upon which policies are determined at state, national, and international levels. Similar legislation has been passed by other states. In July 2000, New Jersey passed the nation's first Halal food bill. Minnesota has also adopted a Muslim consumer protection bill.