Facilitated by Euro Quality Lambs, HHUGS Qurbanis are HMC certified Halal and Tayyib. All sheep offered for Qurbani are slaughtered without stunning and in accordance with Islamic methods. Euro Quality Lambs has an in-house Sharia advisor, Imam Sohyab Peerbhai, who is present during the sacrifice. The sheep we purchase for your Qurbani are raised in the best conditions on British pastures. Furthermore, the UK has the highest standards in meat production, ensuring animal welfare and hygiene. This is in keeping with the Muslim ethos of excellence and goodness –Tayyib.

HHUGS accepts orders of Qurbani up to 1.30pm on the second day of Eid, (Monday 17th June for those following global sighting).

For the first 100 orders placed by 8th Dhul Hijjah 11.59pm Friday 14th June, Euro Quality Lambs will perform the slaughter of the Qurbani sheep, on the first day of Eid (Sunday 16th June, by 5pm) for those following Saudi/global sighting.

Any donors who indicated that they are following local sighting at the time of placing their order, or any donors who placed their orders after Friday 14th June 11:59pm will have their Qurbani performed on Tuesday 18th June 2024. All donors will receive a SMS and an email to confirm that their Qurbani has been completed.

During the trial of Ibrahim (as) Allah swt replaced his son Isma’il (as) with a ram so sheep in particular have a special resonance for Qurbani. Muslims are encouraged to slaughter the best quality and the heaviest animal they can afford. HHUGS provide sheep Qurbani, due to the limited availability of lamb this year.

Lamb needs to be at least 6 months’ old and mature (i.e. appear to be over 17kg carcass weight) to meet the criteria for Qurbani eligibility. In recent years, there has been a limited availability of old season lambs that meet this criterion hence, so HHUGS will perform Qurbani with eligible sheep. It is unlikely HMC will be certifying many old season lambs in 2024, but only sheep which are 12 months plus.

The UK lamb industry is seasonal and lambing (when lambs are born) normally occurs between February-April. For Qurbani, this year eligible lambs must be born before 16th December 2024.

Euro Quality Lambs have endeavoured to purchase eligible animals of known age in advance to eliminate the risk of underage animals. This has led to a higher cost as the animals must be looked after and fed up to the date of Qurbani.

They have also engaged with the sheep farming industry so they understand better the Qurbani market requirements and the dates coming earlier in future years, such as the Livestock Auctioneers Association, Sheep Breeders, National Farmers Union and National Sheep Association as well as directly with farmers at Welshpool and Ruthin livestock markets. Industry representatives have initiated a 6-month plus declaration system where farmers who are selling eligible lambs born before the required date, sign a declaration confirming this prior to selling their animals.

Lamb needs to be at least 6 months’ old to meet the criteria for Qurbani eligibility. In recent years, there has been a limited availability of old season lambs that meet this criterion hence, so HHUGS will perform Qurbani with eligible sheep. It is unlikely HMC will be certifying many old season lambs in 2024, but only sheep which are 12 months plus.

Lamb price follows a typical seasonal pattern based on supply and demand. The UK sheep industry is inherently tayyib (pure, wholesome) as it is a grass-based system so most sheep will only eat grass and forage during its life. Weather patterns and grass growth in parts of the country affect the supply of lambs.

Lamb is typically at its highest price in May and at its lowest in September. As the Qurbani date moves back 10-11 days each year the base price of lamb will rise due to less availability of livestock.

Supply of Qurbani-age-eligible lamb and the base price of standard lamb at the time affect the Qurbani price. Lambs are normally slaughtered between 3 and 12 months of age. Typically lambing (when lambs are born) occurs between February and April but Qurbani lambs must be born before 16th December 2023 in order to be at least six months old by 16th June 2024. There is thus a dwindling number of Qurbani eligible lamb supply which pushes the Qurbani lamb price up more than the standard price of lamb at the time. Increased demand and reduced supply increases prices.

The Prophet (saw) said that there is reward for “every fibre of wool” on the animal. Thus the bigger the animal the more the reward. Our Qurbani lambs are 18-23kg carcass weight. The lower the weight the greater the chance of the lamb being less than six months old and so not eligible for Qurbani. HHUGS will therefore, perform Qurbani with eligible sheep this year due to availability and to ensure they are HMC approved.

The day of Qurbani also affects its price. In 2024, Eid is likely to fall on Sunday or Monday. If the first day is on a weekend the prices are higher as there are higher wage costs for workers, vets, meat hygiene inspectors, drivers etc.

It is prescribed for those intending to offer Qurbani during Eid ul-Adha, to refrain from removing/trimming their hair and clipping their nails, during the last ten days of the lunar month. This ruling applies only to the person offering the sacrifice, and not to his/her family, nor for the person performing it on his/her behalf.

Some traditions state that the person should refrain from the first day of Dhul Hijjah until after their Qurbani has been performed.

‘When you see the new moon of Dhu’l-Hijjah, and one of you wants to offer a sacrifice, let him refrain from [removing anything] from his hair or nails.’ (Muslim)

Other traditions state that the person should refrain until after he/she has prayed the Eid prayer, and even if his/her own Qurbani has not yet been carried out i.e. once the proper time for Qurbani has commenced, he/she may resume personal grooming, without waiting for their own sacrifice to be performed.

According to Sheikh Ibn Jibrin, it is permissible for a person offering a sacrifice to clip their nails and cut their hair when the time for the sacrifice begins i.e. after performing the Eid prayer on the 10th of Dhul Hijjah, even if the actual sacrifice has not yet taken place, just as a pilgrim comes out of the state of ihram by stoning and shaving, despite their sacrifice not being performed yet.

We regret that we aren’t able to offer this service due to the number of Qurbanis we perform and the limitations of our teams on the ground. On the day, Euro Quality Lambs staff will be extremely busy with the overseeing of the slaughter of up to 5000 animals a day, around 10,000 in the days of Eid, and then the division, processing and packing of the meat. HHUGS own staff and volunteers are usually occupied with arranging transportation and ensuring timely delivery of the meat to beneficiaries. Therefore, we are sorry that we usually do not have the capacity to host individuals at the abattoirs during Qurbani.

We regret that we aren’t able to offer this service at the current time, due to logistical limitations and the limited capacity of our teams on the ground. Therefore, all Qurbani meat will be distributed to HHUGS’ beneficiaries in the UK. With regards to donating Qurbani meat, Imam Malik said:

‘There is no limit to what may be eaten or given in charity or used to feed the poor or the rich, whether one wants to give it uncooked or cooked.’ (al-Kaafi, 1/424).

According to the Shafi’i school, it is mustahabb -recommended to give most of the Qurbani meat in charity. (Al-Siraaj al-Wahhaaj, 563)

According to the traditions, one sacrifice offered by the man or primary breadwinner of a household, is sufficient as Qurbani for himself and the members of his family. This includes his wife, children and parents, if they are all living in the same house. If the wife or any other member of the household wishes to offer Qurbani at her/their own expenses, she/they may do so.

An-Nawawi (ra) reported that those who regarded it as permissible for a man to offer Qurbani for himself and his family in this way, and share the rewards of it with them, quoted the following hadith as evidence.

‘A'isha (ra) reported that the Prophet Muhammad (saw) offered Qurbani as follows: ‘... He placed it on the ground and when he was about to slaughter it, he said, ‘In the name of Allah, Oh Allah, accept [this sacrifice] on behalf of Muhammad, the family of Muhammad and the Ummah of Muhammad;’ then he slaughtered it.’ (Muslim)

It is also permissible for those offering Qurbani to do so with the intention to share the reward with whomever he wants from his relatives. This includes relatives who have passed away. The Qurbani may either be offered on behalf of the deceased and the living, or a separate Qurbani may be offered on behalf of the deceased (although this was not the practice of the Prophet (saw).)

We regret that we are unable to accept and distribute meat from donors due to logistical limitations involving collection, storage and delivery. During Eid ul-Adha, HHUGS teams are extremely busy with facilitating and distributing Qurbani, and we work on a tight schedule and route to ensure everything runs smoothly. We are unable to accommodate changes or special requests that could potentially hinder our service or distribution.

HHUGS has a strict confidentiality policy, which protects the privacy of our beneficiaries who are vulnerable by definition of their situation. Therefore, we are unable to give out the addresses of our beneficiaries, to donors who wish to distribute/deliver meat to them directly.