HMC Halal Monitoring Committee

What the mark looks like

On red meat there is no label or tag. HMC presses a moulded stamp into the meat itself, which is why you meet the mark at a butcher counter rather than on a wrapper. Chicken is different: it carries an HMC coloured, serialised label, which may be missing once the bird is cut into pieces. Certified shops display an HMC certificate.

What they certify, and what they do not

• Meat and poultry and products made from them: fresh beef, lamb and poultry, doners, kebabs, burgers, sausages and samosas
• Abattoirs, butchers, caterers, takeaways and schools, inspected by HMC inspectors and monitors
• Not additives or other ingredients as such: HMC's own FAQ says it deals only with the meat and poultry sector and refers ingredient questions to GMWA. Its homepage nevertheless lists non-meat suppliers and invites non-meat products to apply.

Where they stand on the two disputed questions

Stunning

Not permitted

Machine slaughter

Not permitted

Covers

Meat, food and outlets

How to check a certificate is genuine

• Use the shop finder on halalhmc.org, which searches by address or by name
• Check the certified suppliers list, which separates meat from non-meat
• On red meat, look for the moulded stamp rather than a printed label
• On chicken, look for the coloured, serialised HMC label, and if the bird is sold in pieces, ask to see the labelled chicken before it is cut

Criticism and disputes

HMC's refusal to stun is politically contested: a petition to ban non-stun slaughter was debated in the UK Parliament in 2025, as HMC reports on its own news pages. HMC also moved from an unincorporated association to a company limited by guarantee, a change it answers in its own FAQ.