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MEETING WITH MUSLIM COUNCIL OF BRITAIN

The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) recently met Darhim Hashim during the IHI Alliance CEO’s visit to United Kingdom on 18 January 2010. Representing the council was Dr. Shuja Shafi, Chair of Food Standards and Chaplaincy Committee.

Inaugurated in November 1997, MCB is a national representative Muslim umbrella body with over 500 affiliated national, regional and local organisations, mosques, charities and schools. Since its inception, MCB has pledged to work for the common good of society as a whole; encouraging individual Muslims and Muslim organisations to play a full and participatory role in public life.

In his discussion with Darhim, Dr. Shuja talked about MCB’s involvement in Halal standards and its development as part of the council’s activities in promoting cooperation, consensus and unity of Muslim affairs in Britain. The British Halal market, considered under-served in the UK, is estimated worth up to USD6.27 billion yearly.

Over the years, MCB has also successfully promulgated several innovative projects funded by government and non-government bodies to raise the capability of British Muslims academically, nurturing leadership and role models as well as enhancement of service provision by British mosques.

In 2007, MCB collaborated with Cornell University College of Agriculture and Applied Science in a project entitled “Developing a humane, Halal compliant sheep and goat slaughter system” aiming to help the Muslim community and others doing "local" slaughter to do a better job of meeting modern animal welfare requirements. Dr. Shuja himself was one of the key persons in the project that also had world’s most prominent animal scientist, Temple Grandin as a collaborator.

Darhim also learned from Dr. Shuja about the Muslim’s community struggle against the rise of “Islamophobia” and growing anti-Muslim movement in Britain - issues which seem echoed throughout Europe. Islam is the second largest in the UK with Muslims being the fastest growing segment of middle class.