Norwegian butcher is unveiling the first reindeer meat ham for Muslims

Dec 4, 2013 13:28 GMT  ·  By

Muslim citizens will be able to enjoy their own special meat after a Norwegian abattoir slaughtered more than 100 reindeer in the special “halal” way with the purpose of creating Islamic accepted ham.

Harry Dyrstad is the owner of the Vilteksperten abattoir from Trondheim, Norway, that specializes in wildlife. Starting this year, it will create the first reindeer ham to be commercialized. With the help of a certified halal butcher, the slaughter house sacrificed 100 arctic deers in the Islamic-accepted way with the purpose of exploring this specific Muslim market, according to DailyMail.

The animal flesh was approved by the Islamic Council of Norway, and now the company can start butchering and sending the reindeer meat to shops around the country. “We had the idea one-and-a-half years ago. We spoke to someone who had some contracts in Dubai, and he said that if you want to sell reindeer meat, it has to be halal, so we had to try,” Mr. Drystad told the press.

This particular business also offers the possibility of creating Muslim accepted ham for the holidays. “It is going to be exciting to see how Muslims receive the novelty of reindeer. This is a completely new halal-product that Muslims have not had access till before,” the General Secretary of the Islamic Council of Norway said.

Reindeer muscle is very popular in the northern regions, especially in Scandinavia, and it is used as a Christmas traditional meal. Northerners have been herding the animals for centuries and some of the Sami population of indigenous people are still living off this kind of farming.

Finland is already struggling with an increasing demand of reindeer meat coming from Germany, France and Spain. The farmed stock is barely enough to cover the domestic demand and officials are concerned that the huge demand will cause people to start hunting the wild animals.

Even if enjoying the taste of Dasher, Dancer and Vixen can seem quite heartless, the reindeer meat has been appreciated for its exotic taste, becoming one of the favorite Christmas meals not only in the Northern region.