Q. The Institute of Halal Food Control in Indianapolis has published a list of food ingredients pointing out which of them is permissible for a Muslim to consume. Some of these are ingredients of products such as chocolate sold in Saudi Arabia. There is no disclosure of the source of these ingredients. For example, imported cheese does not disclose the type of animal from which the rennet ingredient has been obtained. This applies to a wide variety of products. Could you please explain what we should do in such circumstances.
A.R. Athar, Riyadh
A. Thank God, we do not have much problem here in Saudi Arabia, because the authorities require importers to make sure that what they import conforms to Islamic standards and teachings. Importers are required to obtain certificates of suitability for Muslim consumption from a reliable source.
Having said that, I would like to explain that we are often liable to carry things too far. We must remember that when the Children of Israel did that, God imposed on them restrictions which were not required in the first place. God has given us the story of the cow they were required to slaughter, and how they kept asking for specifications until the description they were given was met by only one cow and they had to pay dearly for it. Had they slaughtered any cow when the order was given, that would have been enough and they would have been obedient.
I note from the list you have sent me that the Institute advises people to investigate the source of rennet in cheese. How are we to do that? Can we contact the manufacturers? If so, are they willing to give the information we require? Besides, when we buy cheese, can we see any rennet in it? The rennet is part of a chemical reaction that is needed to form the cheese, but, as a result of the reaction, it loses its identity in the product and we simply have cheese, which is permissible to eat, no matter where its rennet came from. Consider the case of grapes and grape juice. It is permissible to eat and drink. Should the juice become wine, it is then forbidden to drink, but when the wine becomes vinegar, it is perfectly permissible to use. This means that the same liquid was first permissible then forbidden then permissible again as a result of the changes it has undergone. This applies to many of the products the list includes.
People sometime mention that they would not even eat French fries bought at a place like McDonald’s in a non-Muslim country, for fear that they are fried in the same oil used to fry the hamburgers, which may be from an animal not slaughtered in the Islamic way. This is again carrying things too far. To start with, I would love that all Muslims do not use such restaurants because of the poor quality of their food. However, if they do, then let them consider: potatoes are never fried in the same containers as the meat. So what is the problem?
If it is the same oil, then what? There is nothing in Islam that tells us that the meat of animals not slaughtered according to the Islamic way is impure. So, if you use the same oil to fry vegetables, how could they become unlawful to eat?
I have repeatedly mentioned that Muslims living in Christian countries may eat the meat of animals slaughtered locally, even when they are not slaughtered by Muslims, because God gives this permission. If we do not know the religion of the slaughterer, we assume that he belongs to the majority of the population who are Christians, even when they are not particular about their religion. Of course it is always better to buy your meat from a Muslim butcher who makes sure that the meat he sells is halal, or permissible for Muslims to eat, but if you buy the other meat, it is all right.
One little word is important at the end: the whole question of food should be approached on the basis of making things easy, not hard. God does not like hardship to be imposed on His servants. He has ensured that, but people continue to make things hard for themselves and others.
