HFA — Halal Food Authority
Larger UK certifier. Permits pre-stunning under controlled conditions and machine slaughter for poultry.
HFA is the larger of the two UK halal certifiers and the one most commonly found on supermarket products in Britain. Its standards permit reversible pre-stunning (where the animal can recover if not slaughtered) for cattle and lamb, and machine-blade slaughter for poultry on a moving conveyor line.
HFA's argument for permitting these methods follows the position of most major Muslim countries (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt) and the majority of contemporary scholars who hold that as long as the animal is alive at the moment of slaughter and the name of Allah has been invoked, the slaughter is valid.
Some British Muslims prefer HMC over HFA because they hold a stricter traditional Hanafi position; others have no concern with HFA's methods. The choice is yours and shouldn't be a source of conflict within the community — both bodies operate under scholarly oversight.
Slaughter policy at a glance
- Stunning: allowed
- Machine slaughter: allowed
- Slaughter must be by: a Muslim, invoking Allah's name (Bismillahi Allahu Akbar), via a single cut to the throat severing the windpipe, food-pipe, and both jugulars.