Another Mistake Monday
In a previous post, I wrote about how I like to take small gifts, especially chocolate, to my hosts when I go on long-distance trips. Everybody likes chocolate, right?
A few years ago, I was on business in Malaysia. Before I went, I read up a little on the country. I learned that the country has a mixed race population and is mostly Islamic. I think to myself, “no alcohol, just to be safe” and proceed to buy some nice big bars of chocolate to take with me.
To say the least, I was stunned when, after I had handed out the European chocolate to my hosts, one of the women started studying the ingredients list and asked me if the chocolate was halal - did this chocolate bar meet the Islamic conditions for being a “pure” food, one that may be eaten?
My understanding of halal, like my understanding of kosher foods, is basic. No alcohol, no pork, special method of butchering. How do these criteria apply to chocolate? My host didn’t know either, but if the wrapper didn’t say specifically that the chocolate was halal, she was not going to eat it.
I won’t be taking chocolate bars to Islamic countries any time soon. Come to think of it, chocolate is not a very good gift in any type of tropical or sub-tropical climate.
Related Stories
POSTED IN: Customs and Culture, Mistake Monday
0 opinions for Another Mistake Monday
No one has left a comment yet. You know what this means, right? You could be first!
Have an opinion? Leave a comment: