Much Ado About “Ham And Cheese” – Akmal Salleh Sees Red, KK Mart Blames Supplier
KK Mart has suspended its dealings with the supplier in question.


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We all still remember the KK Mart sock controversy, don’t we?
Last week, the company was dealt another blow when two of its outlets within the Universiti Malaya campus grounds in Petaling Jaya were ordered to close temporarily over “ham and cheese”.
What happened, exactly?
Following allegations that the two outlets in UM were selling food with “dubious halal logo”, the university announced in a press statement that they were looking into the matter.
The allegation concerns sandwiches labelled as “ham and cheese” which carried the halal logo.
As they vow to investigate, the 24-hour outlets were ordered to close for a spell.
Enter Akmal Salleh
UMNO youth chief Dr Muhammad Akmal Saleh wasted no time in expressing his outrage over the matter, despite investigation being underway.
@drakmalsaleh Luka lama pon masih belum sembuh,kini ditusuk lagi luka yang baru Minta pihak berkuasa siasat dan tindakan yang tegas perlu diambil #drakmalsaleh ♬ Epic Inspiration – Kidmada
He said some UM students had filed a police report on the matter.
Akmal highlighted that “ham” meant it contained pork and asked how come the sandwich had a halal label on something with pork.
It deserves a mention that while ham is generally cured leg of pork, there is also ham made from other meats, such as chicken and turkey.
However, these are usually labelled as chicken ham or turkey ham.
Akmal reminded KK Mart that the community was still angry over the previous socks controversy and that this matter would not be taken lightly.
READ MORE: KK Mart Slammed For Selling Socks With “Allah” Print, Issues Immediate Apology
READ MORE: KK Supermart & Xin Jian Chang Sdn Bhd Fined RM60k Each Over “Allah” Socks
READ MORE: More Than Just An Apology: Founder KK Chai Details Steps Taken In Socks Controversy
According to several sources online, as the label on the product only states “ham and cheese”, the contents of the sandwich can only be perceived as inconclusive.
Referring to a product by just “ham” automatically disqualifies it from getting a halal status and is among the things that are not tolerated according to the Malaysian Domestic Halal Certification Procedure Manual.
KK Mart blames supplier
With photos of the sandwich in question having gone viral, KK Mart today clarified that their logo on the sandwich had been misused by the sandwich’s supplier.
As reported by FMT, KK Mart said they have suspended dealings with the supplier, a company known as Shake And Bake Cafe.
They have also lodged a police report and issued a legal notice to the supplier.
On the halal logo, KK Mart said it was the supplier that provided the halal certification to them. The labelling was done by the supplier and they were not authorised to slap the KK Mart logo on the sandwiches.
Meanwhile, the Malaysian Islamic Development Corporation (JAKIM) said the sandwich and its manufacturing company do not have halal certification.
The company’s action in printing the halal logo on the packaging was a violation under the Trade Descriptions Act 2011 concerning Trade Descriptions (Certification and Marking of Halal) Order 2011.
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