This photo of Singaporean produced pork has been doctored to include a halal stamp

This article is more than one year old.
Published on July 25, 2019 at 09:00
3 min read
By AFP Singapore

An image has been shared hundreds of times in multiple Facebook posts which claim it shows “halal-certified pork” produced in Singapore and sold in Australia. The claim is false; the image has been doctored from a photo of packaged pork which was not halal-certified; Singapore’s Islamic Religious Council and the supermarket where the product is purportedly from both said the image was a hoax.

The image was published in this Facebook post on May 1, 2019.

Below is a screenshot of the misleading post:

Screenshot of misleading Facebook post

The text alongside the image states: “A product from Singapore sold in Australia as Halal Pork. This is the condition of Halal branding all over the world. Jus don't believe on Halal stickers on food packets and restaurants... Any one can easily use the Halal symbol for anything.”

The post’s caption states: “NOW I've see it ALL. HALAL PORK.”

The image shows a piece of pork wrapped with packaging marked with details of Singapore supermarket chain NTUC FairPrice Co-Operative, with a stamp on the front which purports to show the meat has been certified halal by the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS).

The same photo was published in Facebook posts here, here and here, as well as on Twitter here with a similar claim.

The claim is false. Pork is considered haram in Islam, which means it is forbidden for Muslims to consume it.

MUIS told AFP that the image was a 2007 hoax which had surfaced repeatedly over the years.

MUIS told AFP in an email dated July 17, 2019:

“Thank you for your email. Pls find Muis’ response below.

“The image is a hoax from 2007 that has been addressed multiple times over the years. Indeed many falsehoods such as this resurface periodically, sometimes even after a few years.

“Muis takes a serious view against such irresponsible acts which may confuse and mislead the public, and even potentially disrupt social cohesion and erode trust in institutions.

“Muis continues to advise members of the public not to spread unverified information. When in doubt, they should seek clarification from correct and credible sources.”

NTUC FairPrice told AFP, in an email dated July 17, 2019, that the image had been doctored, and said they had reported the matter to the police.

“We understand that an old image of a tampered packaging of FairPrice Pasar fresh pork carrying a halal certification mark has again resurfaced on social media.

“This image started circulating on the Internet in 2007 via an email hoax. We are mindful of the serious religious implications of this matter and regard this as a willful act of mischief, and had lodged multiple reports with the Singapore Police since then. We have also addressed and clarified this issue previously on social media and various local and international media agencies.

“We would like to once again alert the public on the falsity of this image and in doing so, assure the public that the original packaging of Pasar Fresh Pork does not carry the halal sticker from the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS). As with all nutritional and product information for food items, we take great care in ensuring that the information printed on the packaging of our housebrand products is accurate and certified.

“Any customers with further queries can contact our customer hotline at 6552 2722 or through this email at general.feedback@fairprice.com.sg

“We hope that you will work with us in clearing any doubts in people’s minds as we continue to receive queries into this matter even after more 10 years since this matter surfaced. We would also like to seek your assistance to inform the public not to circulate the image further to avoid any unnecessary confusion or offence that may result from it.”

The doctored image has been circulating online since at least 2007. AFP conducted a keyword search and found this Facebook post published in 2007 which included the image.

A local Singaporean blog also documented the issue back in 2007 here.

A photo of what the usual packaging of NTUC FairPrice pork looks like can be seen here.

Below is a screenshot of what the normal packaging of pork from NTUC FairPrice:

Screenshot of a normal packaging of pork from NTUC FairPrice

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