If you are buying a Danish duck from a supermarket this Christmas, chances are it was slaughtered the halal way, reports Jyllands-Posten.

Dansk And, the only industrial duck slaughterhouse in Denmark, uses this religious method to minimise the animals’ suffering and to appeal to the Muslim population in the country.

Until recently Denmark did not have an industrial duck slaughterhouse, and all the Danish ducks had to be transported and slaughtered either in Poland, Germany or the Netherlands.

Already done with chicken
In October this year, however, Dansk And opened a renovated slaughterhouse in Struer Harbour in central Jutland and expects to process between 800,000 to 900,000 ducks annually, which corresponds to 20-25 percent of the total sales of duck in Denmark.

According to Martin Daasbjerg, the company’s CEO, Danish chicken producers have been slaughtering chicken the halal way for years and he believes butchering the ducks this way is best too.

Supervised by imam
The ducks are run through a stream of water before their throats are cut and they bleed out.

The work is carried out by Muslim employees and supervised by an imam.

Dansk And is thus taking into consideration the needs of the 250,000 Muslims living in Denmark, who are also potential customers.

Chance to choose
However, Martin Henriksen, the integration spokesperson for Dansk Folkeparti, argues the company should give Danish customers the chance to choose if they want a halal-slaughtered duck or not and show as much respect for Danish traditions as they show for the Muslim ones.

While there is no difference in the taste, Henriksen fears Islamic rules are taking up more and more space in Danish society.

Although all the ducks from Dansk And are halal-labelled, consumers can still get a non-halal slaughtered duck for their Christmas table if they shop directly from a duck farmer or if they buy an imported frozen duck in a supermarket.