“Where’s The Bacon Boxmasters?”

…demands the English Defence League, in a confrontation with British Kentucky Fried Chicken executives at a board meeting in Manchester.

As has been widely reported, certain KFC restaurants in the UK have decided to become halal, on a trial basis, as the firm explains here. The Daily Mail noted eight such restaurants in May last year; the scheme has recently been extended, which has brought new media attention. The intention is obviously to compete with the various halal fried-chicken outlets that one can find in parts of London and elsewhere; the EDL, however, believes that halal-only KFCs are taking their “rights” away.

Meanwhile, it seems that some Muslims are sceptical of KFC’s halal status anyway:

Imam Yusuf Shabbir of the Lancashire Council of Mosques said: “If KFC confirms to us that it has no intention of changing the mechanical method of slaughter we will advise members of the Muslim community this.”

But a KFC spokesman said: “We’ve worked with animal welfare organisations and the Halal Food Authority to ensure our processes fully comply.

The HFA website does indeed endorse the KFC method. The spokesman also adds:

“And wherever possible we’ve made sure our trial stores are near non- halal restaurants, to provide customers with a choice.”