Tuesday, 3 September 2002: Great efforts are being made to ensure the constant availability of halal food in the cafeteria at Monash University’s Gippsland campus. The campus, situated in the small Victorian town of Churchill, is about 150 km south-east of Melbourne. This move, initiated by the chaplaincy of the university, aims to cater for the small, but not insignificant, number of Muslim students and staff totaling to about 30.

Maria Bradford, chaplain at the university, said in an interview that she has been working with the management of the university’s catering department in regards to the provision and sale of halal food products on-campus. She is also being updated by Monash International, a body for the welfare of international students, who informs her of the influx of new international students and those amongst them who have particular dietary needs, specifically the Muslims.

Halal food products are those which are permissible in the name of Islam. The main concern here is food products containing meat. Muslims are prohibited from eating pork while other types like chicken, beef or lamb can only be consumed if they are properly slaughtered. This act of slaughtering, done by a male Muslim, involves complete drainage of blood from the animal’s body, thus ensuring the quality of the meat and avoiding any bacterial contamination. This is consistent with the general notion of cleanliness that is highly stressed in Islam.

Maria pointed out that there is an increasing awareness in present society of different dietary needs, be it for medical or religious purposes or lifestyle suits. Hence, the university staff is always aware and concerned with providing halal food for its students and staff.

In fact, there was the sale of halal meat pies and sausage rolls in the university’s cafeteria, a few years back that lasted for only 6 months. The cafeteria ceased selling them because the company that produced these pies and rolls is no longer in business. But with a new management at the university’s catering department, there seems to be a renewed and determined effort to once again serve halal food at the cafeteria. Moreover, the university’s cafeteria just received a facelift and the manager is seriously thinking of setting aside a new counter serving not only hot halal food, but also Asian dishes.

According to the manager of the catering department, Brian Grimes, there is always the demand for more variety of food served at the cafeteria, like non-Western dishes to cater for the international students and staff. When contacted, Brian mentioned that feedback he had gotten from a number of international students about this and a survey done about halal food confirmed that these dishes are very much appreciated on-campus.

However, he also noted the difficulties faced in this effort mostly because of the inaccessibility of Churchill from the food suppliers. Presently, he is actively searching for suppliers who are willing to make their way down to rural Churchill. One highlight that he mentioned though is the new hiring of an international chef next week. This move is a starting effort and the catering department is hopeful in building up on that.

Maria said that she understands Brian’s difficulties and that the problem is, "not a matter of not wanting; it’s a matter of being in Gippsland."

An interesting point that arose from the interview with Maria is that while this effort of providing halal food is aimed primarily for the university’s students and staff, she sees immense potential for the products to be available to the general Muslim community in Churchill and neighboring towns as well. Maria has been contacting the manager of Manny’s Market in nearby Morwell who is currently selling whole frozen halal chicken in its poultry section. He is also looking into providing halal beef and lamb to the meat section. Manny’s is taking advantage of this issue to expand its economic profitability, considering that the university’s Muslim population frequent the market because of its close proximity and also, due to the growing Muslim community around the region.

The manager even gets orders from towns such as Sale, located about an hour’s drive, east from Churchill. This is due to the non-availability of such meat in between these towns, the nearest being in Springvale, near Melbourne.

According to Maria, Manny’s manager "is actually offering a service to the Gippsland area. It is to his benefit, from an economical and marketing aspect. Most importantly, he sees the need to cater for the university’s students and staff, and the ever-growing Muslim population in the area".

Hadzar Ahmad, a third-year Communication student at the university is pleased with the efforts that are being made. She said, "It’s good to know that we might soon be able to have proper meals in school, plus with Manny’s providing beef and lamb, we don’t have to travel all the way to Melbourne to get them in bulk. I really hope this matter will work out."

Yes, that is the hope for all. It is now only a matter of time.