Russians’ Perceiving The Halal As A Sign Of Quality (Case Of St. Petersburg Meat Market)

Abstract

Abstract There is a lot of scandals and even food poisoning caused by consuming poor-quality meat in Russian Federation (RF). This is especially true for ready-toeat meat products (e.g., sausages, smoked meats, dumplings, meat pies), as the buyers do not see what they are made of. The fact is that in the USSR they had a well-developed system of state verification and standardization of all food products. The state standards (GOSTs) issued for each food product had the power of law. Violations of GOST requirements were regarded as crimes. However, the RF Law “On Standardization” has factually lost its power in connection with the adoption (2002) of the Federal Law “On Technical Regulating”. Therefore, new GOSTs have not previous power and are removed from the jurisdiction of the RF government. The fuzzy “technical specifications” (TUs) in contrast with previous severe GOSTs for food do not provide products quality control but are only indicators of biological, chemical and radiation safety. Using GOST labelling on food items seems as a marketing gimmick today. Nevertheless, recently there have been reports of the development of digital quality control and related legislation. Research findings presented herein show significant growth of Halal meat market. Increased customer confidence in Halal products is also found among non-Muslim buyers. The Council of Muftis of RF, together with the presidential administration of RF, has initiated the development of the state document “Requirements for producing, manufacturing, processing, storage and sale of Halal products”. Halal labelling was developed and approved and Halal stores opened. Our brief customer survey has showed the results of customer confidence in the Halal meat and meat product market could be found across the entire range of Halal food items. Taking into account global trends, the Halal food market in Russia as well as Halal industry as a whole have great prospects (exporting Halal items included) and this phenomenon demands a future extended research.