ASalaam wa Alaykum - Peace be with you,

Let me start by welcoming you to our Islamic Services of America (I.S.A.) website! We hope that you will benefit from the information and globally recognized services that we offer.

I.S.A. was originally formed in the early 1970’s as an educational foundation to American Muslims in various communities with information such as English translated versions of the Quran and guidance on Islamic issues in addition to providing community services and assisting immigrants and refugee’s in America from various parts of the world.

At this same time, many American’s were traveling overseas to Saudi Arabia and the Arabian Gulf area for work during the “Oil Boom” and Industrialization of these countries. At the same time, so too were the American restaurant franchises and the demand for USA foods and goods.

As you can imagine if you’re a pizza concept going to these Muslim countries you surely aren’t going to be selling pork based pepperoni, sausage pizzas or burger concept offering bacon double cheese burgers, and so the development of Halal beef and turkey based versions of these items began and I.S.A. took on the role of an independent Islamic body to conduct authentic Halal slaughter and certification of beef, lamb and poultry, but it didn’t stop there as Halal verification of the toppings and condiments were equally as important.

One example of this is cheese and the rennet that is used in its production. Rennet coagulates the milk, causing it to separate into curds and whey; rennet is a natural complex of enzymes and is produced in the stomach of mammals, and was commonly sourced from swine, but even if sourced from bovine/ ovine species; it must be obtained from a Halal slaughter.

As such Islamic Services of America was officially registered in the State of Iowa in 1975 as the first Halal certification and services organization in the USA, and so began the Halal industry. From day one, we have been solely committed to development and implementation of authentic Halal certification, production standards and the science behind it.

Likewise I.S.A. was also the first Halal certifier in North America to be internationally recognized by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, General Municipality of Dubai, M.U.I. in Indonesian, JAKIM in Malaysia, and MUIS in Singapore. These are the strictest government regulatory agencies in the world relative to Halal standards and approval.

For consumers who are interested in Halal we aim to provide you with the information and assurances you need to make properly educated decisions about the purchases for you and your family from food and beverage to pharmaceuticals to cosmetics.

For companies interested in Halal certification; our goal is to provide the most authentic and responsible Halal services for your company and brands at the least possible disruption to your business. Halal integrity, is our primary focus and we work closely with I.S.A. Halal compliant companies to develop the means to reach as many domestic and international Halal consuming markets as possible in an efficient and cost effective manner. We want to help your company reach the rapidly expanding global Halal market.

As an I.S.A. Halal certified company we provide “Your Visa to the Global Halal Market™”.

Paul Musa Habhab
Director, I.S.A.