The Alexandria Planning Commission Tuesday night OK'd a special use permit for a new butcher shop that will kill live chickens on the premises.
Saba Live Poultry, a Halal poultry processor and live butchery, recently applied to the City to open its establishment in Alexandria. The company, which will operate locally as DC Poultry Market Corp.,will open its new slaughter-to-order retail facility at 3225 Colvin Road in Alexandria, just south of the Alexandria Commons shopping center.
Some residents expressed concern, in letters to the Planning Commission, whose members voted to OK the permit Tuesday night with no discussion.
Deborah Cureton wrote, "As a resident of the City, I am very much dismayed and concerned with the proposal to grant a special use permit to allow the slaughtering of live animals in our community. I am disgusted with the thought that this City would permit such an operation in a city that promotes itself as being animal friendly."
Melissa Murphy wrote, "The City of Alexandria has a national reputation for being an animal-loving community. We do not need a slaughterhouse here."
The applicant directly addressed this question in the permit application: “Saba Live Poultry uses the Halal method of slaughter to process poultry. The question most usually asked about Halal concerns the method of slaughter. All meat and poultry we process will be slaughtered strictly in accordance with Islamic rites, where one of the most important prerequisites is the humane treatment of any animal intended for human food. Saba Live Poultry believes that concept of Halal involves the whole process of meat production from the wholesome food fed to the animals in their rearing right through until the meat reaches the consumer.”
Saba Live Poultry has 14 locations nationwide, including several in New York, where the company was founded in 1998. Other locations are in Connecticut, Pennsylvania, California and Florida.
According to the company’s application to open in Alexandria, customers will be able to identify the live chicken they would like to purchase. The chicken will be weighed by a hanging scale before being moved to the slaughter room, where it would receive prayers before it is killed, plucked, cleaned and brought back to the customer, all in accordance with Halal standards.
The company’s website, at www.sabahalal.com, was not accessible as of publication time.
