News Agencies – September 2, 2010
22 outlets of popular French fast food chain Quick are serving burgers it says respect Islamic dietary law. While many Muslims are delighted, the Paris Mosque suggested that Quick’s criteria aren’t all-encompassing enough. Quick’s meat is certified as halal, but Cheikh Al Sid Cheikh, assistant to the rector of the Paris Mosque, said the burger chain should have had the other ingredients checked as well, from its mustard to buns to fries.
Quick responded that it has no intention of making any of its restaurants halal through-and-through — beer is still served there, for example, said spokeswoman Valerie Raynal. Quick, the No. 2 burger chain in France after McDonald’s, is the latest group to enter the expanding French market for halal food, which has an estimated euro5.5 billion ($7 billion) in annual sales.
Both the Casino supermarket chain and the Fleury Michon line of cold cuts have halal offerings. The Paris Mosque has high praise for Kentucky Fried Chicken France, which it says spent four months consulting with Muslim officials recently about its fare. The chain is a rarity in that it has offered halal food for years — though it never trumpeted the fact.
