Halal Chicken Suppliers for U.S. Restaurants: Certified Sources and What to Ask

U.S. restaurants can buy halal chicken from processors and distributors certified by bodies such as Halal Monitoring Services (HMS), Islamic Services of America (ISA) and IFANCA. The certifier matters as much as the supplier: HMS certifies only hand-slaughtered poultry, while other certifiers accept different methods. Ask for a current certificate and confirm it on the certifier’s own directory.

Reviewed by Hafiz Maqsood Ahmed.

Federal regulators do not settle the question. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) says it does not define religious standards such as what is halal, though it is responsible for labels being truthful, Food Safety News reported in 2025. A petition filed that August asks FSIS to define “zabiha halal” as hand slaughter without stunning, or to require certifiers to publish their definitions; an earlier petition seeking hand-or-machine disclosure on labels was denied. Until rules change, restaurants rely on certifiers. Our guide to what halal certification means explains how certification works.

Hand slaughter or machine slaughter?

The biggest difference between suppliers is the slaughter method. HMS, part of the Shariah Board of America, says it certifies “only hand-slaughtered Halal meat,” monitors from slaughterhouse to distributor to restaurant and includes random inspections in its contracts, according to its certified listing and website. Other certifiers accept different practices, so restaurants serving customers who insist on hand slaughter should ask. The debate is explained in our article on hand slaughter versus machine slaughter.

HMS-certified poultry sources

The following suppliers appeared on HMS’s certified listing for chicken in October 2026. Certificates expire, so check the listing before ordering.

Other certified brands

• Midamar, based in Iowa, says it works with several certifiers, “most often” Islamic Services of America, and sells a zabiha chicken line and wholesale products.
• Saffron Road says all its products are certified halal by IFANCA. Its range is frozen, packaged food rather than raw food-service chicken.

National poultry brands sometimes run halal lines for specific customers. We have not listed brands whose certification we could not confirm from the certifier or the company.

Questions to ask any supplier

1. Can you send a current certificate naming the certifier, the plant, the products covered and the expiry date?
2. Is the chicken slaughtered by hand or by machine, and is stunning used?
3. Does the certifier list you on its public directory?
4. Can invoices be traced to lots and to the certified plant?
5. Are certified and non-certified products kept separate in storage and delivery?
6. Does the certifier make unannounced inspections?

Fraud cases show why these checks matter: Midamar’s owners were prosecuted over falsified halal export documents for beef in a case that ran from 2014 to 2016, Food Safety News reported.

Displaying your halal status

Several states, including New York, Illinois and New Jersey, require businesses that sell halal food to post or file certification details. Customers increasingly check, as described in our guide on how to confirm whether a restaurant is halal.

Background on meat standards is in our guide to halal meat.