Halal Matters

In today's globalized world, halal (meaning 'permissible' or 'lawful') is about more than food. Politics, power and ethics all play a role in the halal industry in setting new standards for production, trade, consumption and regulation. The question of how modern halal markets are constituted is increasingly important and complex. Written from a unique interdisciplinary global perspective, this book demonstrates that as the market for halal products and services is expanding and standardizing, it is also fraught with political, social and economic contestation and difference. The discussion is illustrated by rich ethnographic case studies from a range of contexts, and consideration is given to both Muslim majority and minority societies. Halal Matters will be of interest to students and scholars working across the humanities and social sciences, including anthropology, sociology and religious studies.

Florence Bergeaud-Blackler is an anthropologist and Research Fellow at the Institut de recherches et d'étude sur le monde arabe et musulman (IREMAM) in the Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS), France. John Lever is a Lecturer in the University of Huddersfield Business School. Johan Fischer is an Associate Professor in the Department of Society and Globalization at Roskilde University, Denmark.

1. Introduction: Modern halal markets (Florence Bergeaud-Blackler, Johan Fischer and John Lever) 2. Re-imagining Malaysia: A postliberal halal strategy? (John Lever) 3. From an implicit to an explicit understanding: new definitions of halal in Turkey (John Lever and Haluk Anil) 4. Remembering the spirit of halal: An Iranian perspective (Maryam Attar, Khalil Lohi and John Lever) 5. Domestic cooking in Marrakech's medina (Katharina Graff) 6. Islamizing foods (Florence Bergeaud-Blackler) 7. The halal certification market in Europe and in the World: a first panorama (Florence Bergeaud-Blackler) 8. Green Halal: Looking for ethical choices (Manon Istasse) 9. Halal, diaspora and the secular in London (Johan Fischer) 10. Muslim food consumption in China: Between qingzhen and halal. (Yukari Sai and Johan Fischer) 11. The political economy of Islamic markets: Halal training in Singapore (Johan Fischer) 12. Who owns halal? International initiatives of halal food regulations (Florence Bergeaud-Blackler)