Two US food companies have pleaded guilty to ‘conspiring to export misbranded beef products to Muslim countries’, including Malaysia and Indonesia.
The two companies, Midamar Corp and Islamic Services of America (ISA), that distribute and certify halal food products, have pleaded guilty to conspiracy to making false statements on export certificates, selling misbranded meat and committing wire fraud, among other offences.
Each company has to pay a fine of $600,000 and they could face a term of probation and an additional fine at sentencing. However, despite the guilty pleas, the companies can appeal the decision.
Midamar is a 40-year-old company that distributes food and is considered a pioneer in halal foods. ISA, on the other hand, certifies Midamar and other companies’ food products as halal and is one of the few organisations approved to certify beef for import into Malaysia, Indonesia, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates. Both were founded and operated by the Aossey family in Cedar Rapids.
According to the conspiracy count, Midamar made “fraudulent, deceptive, and misleading claims” about the source and nature of beef products, the way the cattle were slaughtered and the level of adherence to halal practices that were advertised.
Further, prosecutors alleged that Midamar falsely informed customers that its cattle were hand-slaughtered by specially trained Muslim slaughtermen who always recited the correct prayers. The company had also advertised that it did not use penetrative captive bolt stunning, a process usually used in meatpacking in which an animal is killed when a steel rod is shot into its brain.
The testimony further revealed that some Midamar products came from a Minnesota slaughterhouse that was not approved by Malaysia or Indonesia. Aossey had directed employees to remove its establishment number from the packaging and replace it with labels that falsely showed the meat came from a certified Nebraska slaughterhouse.
Last week, Midamar issued a statement apologising for the error in judgment and said they had “taken full responsibility for wrongful conduct” that occurred from 2007 through 2012 and said the plea agreements resolve all charges against the companies and executives.
Bill Aossey Jr, Midamar’s founder, was found guilty of falsifying documents as part of a scheme to export beef to Malaysia and Indonesia that didn’t meet those countries’ strict standards of religious-based slaughter. The founder is in federal custody but has not been sentenced as yet. However, he could face several years in prison.
