Local media reported that KK Mart had suspended all business dealings with the ham and cheese sandwich supplier, Shake and Bake Cafe, and halted the supply of its sandwiches to all its outlets.
“Only 16 KK Concept Stores carry this product,” it said in a statement on Monday.
The store chain also told the media that it had issued a letter of demand on Friday to Shake and Bake Cafe through its legal team and filed a police report on the following day.
“Shake and Bake Cafe Sdn Bhd provided a halal certificate for the chicken ham and cheese layers for our reference … the (halal) labelling was done by Shake and Bake Cafe,” it said.
KK Mart also said that it was aware of a raid conducted last Friday on Shake and Bake Cafe’s factory by the Islamic development department and the domestic trade and cost of living ministry and has expressed readiness to fully cooperate with the authorities.
“To safeguard the trust and safety of our customers, full cooperation will be provided to ensure strict action is taken against any party that undermines the confidence and well-being of our customers,” it said, as quoted by Free Malaysia Today.
KK MART “ALLAH” SOCKS CONTROVERSY
On Sunday, the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO) Youth Chief Muhammad Akmal Saleh accused KK Mart of misleading consumers with the ham and cheese sandwich, urging the police and the relevant agencies to take action.
“It is not the first time this has happened, we have had enough of these insults to our religion,” he said in a video posted on his social media page, referring to another incident involving the convenience store.
“Old wounds regarding the ‘Allah’ socks controversy have yet to heal”.
In March last year, socks bearing the word “Allah” were found to be sold in several KK Mart outlets, during the holy month of Ramadan.
Photographs of the offending item went viral online and triggered backlash from netizens and prominent public figures, with some, including Akmal Saleh, calling for a KK Super Mart boycott.
Malaysian king Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar was among those who called for a stern action to be taken over the socks.
KK Mart apologised for the sale of the socks in a Facebook post on Mar 13, with its founder following up with a press conference on Mar 16.
Inspections done by KK Super Mart at its 800 branches across the country found only three stores stocking the socks, with 14 pairs with the word “Allah” on them.
Responding to Akmal’s latest comments on the furore over the ham and cheese sandwich, two leaders from parties in the unity government have slammed him for politicising the incident.
“Politicians should not exploit such controversies to score political mileage, this will only exacerbate divisiveness in society and fill the business environment with hatred and instability,” Wee Jeck Seng, vice-president of the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA) said in a statement, as quoted by Free Malaysia Today on Monday.
MCA is part of the Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition.
Wee added that disputes involving religion or halal certification of food should be handled by the relevant professional bodies, like Jakim.
Meanwhile, Democratic Action Party (DAP) Youth chief Woo Kah Leong said that the incident has been sensationalised by UMNO’s Akmal.
“Political leaders should work together to reduce the political temperature that might be raised by those who intend to cause divisions in our society,” he said, as quoted by Free Malaysia Today.
Meanwhile, Jakim also advised the public to check the halal status of food products using the Malaysia Halal Portal or the Verify Halal application, to confirm that the products they are consuming have been certified by the relevant authorities.
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/asia/malaysia-ham-cheese-sandwich-kk-mart-convenience-store-university-malaya-halal-logo-misuse-4856821
