Halal (/həˈlɑːl/ⓘ;[1]Arabic:حلالḥalāl[ħæˈlæːl]) is an Arabic word that translates to'permissible' in English. Although the termhalal is often associated withIslamic dietary laws, particularly meat that is slaughtered according to Islamic guidelines, it also governs ethical practices in business, finance (such as theprohibition of usury (riba)), and daily living. It encompasses broader ethical considerations, including fairness, social justice, and the treatment of animals.[2] The concept ofhalal is central to Islamic practices and is derived from the Quran and the Sunnah (the teachings and practices of the Prophet Muhammad).
In theQuran, the termhalal is contrasted with the termharam ('forbidden, unlawful').[3] The guidelines for what is consideredhalal orharam are laid out in Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh), and scholars interpret these guidelines to ensure compliance with Islamic principles.[4] Thisbinary opposition was elaborated into a more complex classification known as "the five decisions":mandatory,recommended,neutral,reprehensible andforbidden.[5]Islamic jurists disagree on whether the termhalal covers the first two or the first four of these categories.[5] In recent times, Islamic movements seeking to mobilize the masses and authors writing for a popular audience have emphasized the simpler distinction of halal and haram.[6][7]
In the modern world, the concept of halal has expanded beyond individual actions and dietary restrictions to become a global industry, particularly in the food, pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and financial sectors. Halal certification bodies ensure that products and services meet the required standards for consumption by Muslims, and many companies worldwide seek halal certification to cater to the growing demand for halal products, especially with the rise in the global Muslim population.[8] The increasing demand for halal products and services has led to the growth of the halal economy, especially in countries with significant Muslim populations, such as Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Middle East. Many non-Muslim-majority countries also engage in the halal market to meet the needs of their Muslim citizens and global consumers.[9]
The wordshalal andharam are the common terms used in the Quran to designate the categories of lawful or allowed and unlawful or forbidden. In the Quran, therootḥ-l-l denotes lawfulness and may also indicate exiting the ritual state of a pilgrim and entering a profane state. In both these senses, it has an opposite meaning to that conveyed by the rootḥ-r-m (cf.haram andihram). In a literal sense, the root ḥr-m may refer to dissolution (e.g., breaking of an oath) or alighting (e.g., of God's wrath). Lawfulness is usually indicated in the Quran by means of the verbahalla ('to make lawful'), with God as the stated or implied subject.[7]
A halal sign in Chinese (清真,qīng zhēn) at a restaurant inTaipei, Taiwan
Islam generally considers every food halal unless it is specifically prohibited inhadith or theQur'an.[10] Specifically, halal foods are those that are:
Made, produced, manufactured, processed, and stored using machinery, equipment, and/or utensils that have been cleaned according to Islamic law (shariah).
Free from any component that Muslims are prohibited from eating according to Islamic law.[11]
The most common example ofharam (non-halal) food is pork. While pork is the only meat that categorically may not be consumed by Muslims (the Quran forbids it,[12] Surah 2:173 and 16:115)[13][14] other foods not in a state of purity are also considered haram. The criteria for non-pork items include their source, the cause of the animal's death and how it was processed. The majority of Islamic scholars consider shellfish and other seafood halal.[15]Vegetarian cuisine is halal if it does not containalcohol.[16]
Muslims must also ensure that all foods (particularly processed foods), as well as non-food items likecosmetics andpharmaceuticals, are halal.[17][18] Frequently, these products contain animal by-products or other ingredients that are not permissible for Muslims to eat or use on their bodies. Foods which are not considered halal for Muslims to consume include blood[19] and intoxicants such asalcoholic beverages.[20]
A Muslim who would otherwise starve to death is allowed to eat non-halal food if there is no halal food available.[14][21]
Opinions onGMO foods are mixed, although there is no widely accepted prohibition from consuming them.[24] Some clerics and scholars have expressed support, arguing that such food production methods are halal because they contribute to human well-being.[25][26] Voices in opposition to GMOs argue that there is no need for genetic modification of food crops because God created everything perfectly and man does not have any right to manipulate anything that God has created.[24] Some others have raised concern about the theoretical consumption of specific GMO foods produced using genes from pigs.[27]
Muslims believe in what they see as the ethical treatment of animals. Halal practices align with this philosophy by promoting kindness, compassion, and humane treatment throughout the entire lifecycle of the animal. The emphasis on swift and painless slaughter respects the animal's dignity and minimizes suffering.[28]
Halal meat must come from a supplier that uses halal practices.Dhabīḥah (ذَبِيْحَة) is the prescribed method of slaughter for all meat sources, excluding fish and other sealife, per Islamic law. This method ofslaughtering animals consists of using a sharp knife to make an incision that cuts the front of thethroat,oesophagus andjugular veins but not thespinal cord.[29] The head of an animal that is slaughtered using halal methods should be aligned with theqiblah (the direction a Muslim faces when praying)[citation needed]. In addition to the direction, permitted animals should be slaughtered upon utterance of the Islamic prayer "Bismillah, Allahu Akbar" (In the name of God, God is greatest).[30][31]
The slaughter must be performed by a Muslim.[32]Carrion (carcasses of dead animals, such as animals who died in the wild) cannot be eaten.[14] Additionally, an animal that has been strangled, beaten (to death), killed by a fall, gored (to death), savaged by a beast of prey (unless finished off by a human), or sacrificed on a stone altar cannot be eaten.[33]
Animals slaughtered byPeople of the Book (Jews andChristians) can also be considered halal if the slaughter is carried out by jugular slice, the blood drained and the name of Allah invoked.[34] As a result,kosher meat is permitted by some Muslim communities, and is sometimes substituted for halal meat.[35]
Sikhism forbids eating meat from animals that wereslaughtered slowly or with religious ritual,[36] referred to askutha meat.[37] This includes halal meat preparation.[38][39][40][41] The religiously recommended method of slaughter amongSikhs, known asjhatka, is likewise incompatible with halal principles,[42] as with this method not all of the blood is drained from the meat.[43]
A butcher shop inAmman, JordanEid al-Adha's meat distribution in Pakistan
Stunning of the animal is only permitted if it is necessary to calm down a violent animal.[32] British supermarkets report the use of stunning before slaughter for halal meats. The 2011UK Food Standards Agency figures suggest that 84% of cattle, 81% of sheep and 88% of chickens slaughtered for halal meat were stunned before they died.[44]Tesco says "the only difference between the halal meat it sells and other meat is that [the animal] was blessed as [it] was killed."[45] TheBritish Veterinary Association, along with citizens who have assembled a petition with 100,000[46] signatures, have raised concerns regarding a proposedhalalabattoir in Wales, in which animals are not to bestunned prior to killing.[47] Concerns about animal suffering from slaughter without prior stunning has resulted in the ban of slaughter of unstunned animals inDenmark,Luxembourg,Belgium,Netherlands,Norway,Sweden andSwitzerland.[48][49]
Certification for halal products is given by legal authorities in mostMuslim-majority countries, while in other countries, it is voluntarily acquired by companies and issued by non-governmental organizations for an annual fee.[50]
Halal certifications are provided by a number of agencies in the United States. Depending on how the certification will be used for domestic or international export, the certification may need to be done by a qualified entity. If it is for domestic use a local agency with proper knowledge, training and background can issue a halal certificate. If the certificate is going to be used for export then the halal certifier needs to be accredited by the country the halal product is being exported to. A company that needs to certify its product must do their due diligence when hiring a certifier. There are a number of halal certifiers in the US, including ISWA Halal; ISA Halal; Halal Monitoring Services (HMS), based out ofChicago, Illinois;[51] the Halal Food Standards Alliance of America (HFSAA), based out ofOakland, California;[52] and Halal Watch World, based inNew York.[53] Another agency that can help companies identify and screen the proper halal certifier is the US Halal Consultants based in Fairfax, Virginia.
In Australia,halal food certification has been criticized by groups who claim that certifying foods as halal leads to consumers subsidizing a particular religious belief.[54]Australian Federation of Islamic Councils spokesmanKeysar Trad told a journalist in July 2014 that this was an attempt to exploitanti-Muslim sentiments in Australia.[55] A study in 2022 showed that halal certifications did not necessarily reflect the extent to which a halal product came about in whole, and called for greater means of assurance and transparent qualitative methods of halal certification.[56]
TheDubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry estimated the global industry value of halal food consumer purchases to be $1.1 trillion in 2013, accounting for 16.6 percent of the global food and beverage market, with an annual growth of 6.9 percent.[57] Growth regions includeIndonesia ($197 million market value in 2012) andTurkey ($100 million).[58] TheEuropean Union market for halal food has an estimated annual growth of around 15 percent and is worth an estimated $30 billion,[22] approximately $8 billion of which are accounted for in France.[59]
The halal food and beverage industry has also made a significant impact on supermarkets and other food business such as restaurants. French supermarkets had halal food sales totalling $210 million in 2011, a 10.5% growth from five years prior. In France, the market for halal foods is even larger than the market for other types of common foods. For example, in 2010, the market for halal foods and beverages in France was nearly twice that of organic foods.[59]Auchan, a large French supermarket chain, now sells 80 certified halal meat products, along with 30 pre-cooked halal meals and 40 frozen halal products. Upscale restaurants and catering services have also added halal foods to their menus. In addition, many beverage companies such asEvian have taken the effort to add a halal stamp on their products to show that their water and other beverages are pure and not haram or forbidden under Islamic law.[60]
Halal standards and regulations have been considered as an obstacle to international trade while the discrimination towards import products also lacks transparency. Trade disputes related to halal have emerged even among Muslim and Islamic countries, for instance at the regional level within the ASEAN.[61][62]
On 17 December 2020, theCourt of Justice of the European Union ruled that member countries may ban religious slaughter to promoteanimal welfare and could impose non-lethal stunning before the killing of animals. The ruling was in response to a challenge to a 2017 Flemish government prohibition on the killing of animals without prior non-lethal (also called reversible) stunning by Jewish and Muslim associations.[63]
The Muslim community has been receptive of halal food and certification.[64][65] Members of the right-wingHindutva groups in India have protested against the sale of Halal food in India.Bajrang Dal,Vishva Hindu Parishad and other Hindutva groups have run door to door campaigns in the state ofKarnataka, asking people not to purchase halal meat. In March 2022 the Hindutva group Bajrang Dal physically attacked a Muslim meat seller, five persons were arrested in the incident. In March 2022,C. T. Ravi, national general secretary for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, referred to halal food as "economic jihad".[66]
As of August 2012[update], an estimated 27 UKTesco supermarkets, in addition to most urbanAsda and manyMorrisons supermarkets, had halal meat counters, selling meat approved for consumption by Muslims.[67] According to the Food Standards Agency Animal Welfare Update report, published September 2017, 16 percent of animals slaughtered by the halal method were not stunned before slaughter, which violatesRSPCA standards on animal welfare.[68][non-primary source needed] However, it is legal in the UK due to an exemption in the law granted to Jews and Muslims.[69]
In addition to food and diet, a halal lifestyle can includetravel,finance, clothing, media, recreation, cosmetics.[70] A halal lifestyle can even involve professional practises ranging from industrial and manufacturing logistics to supply chains.[56]
Some Muslims refrain from using pharmaceuticals that are not halal. This distinction is most noticeably practiced inMalaysia,[71] which has a large halal pharmaceutical industry, complete with government regulations to make sure the products aretayyib.[72] On the other hand, the Quran obliges Muslims to seek treatment, including preventive ones, for diseases regardless of what the care provider believes in.[73] In particular, medicines containing animal products likegelatin have been deemed permissible by a 1995 council of Islamic jurisprudence, making such distinction unnecessary.[74] The decentralized nature of Islam allows both opinions to exist.
The controversy over pharmaceuticals has led to the refusal of childhood vaccination in some Muslim-majority countries,[75] despite many religious leaders expressly endorsing vaccination.[76] It is also a concern in the rollout of theCOVID-19 vaccine.[73][77][78]
Feminine hygiene products and nappies have been certified as halal in Malaysia. Such certification is not required by the religion, nor is there a demand from Muslims. Critics[who?] consider such "unnecessary" certification as little more than a marketinggimmick, e.g., halal labels on clearly vegetarian soft drinks or naturally grown food items like cereals, pulses, vegetables and processed foods made exclusively from vegetable products.[79][unreliable source?]
^Juan Eduardo Campo, ed. (2009). "Halal".Encyclopedia of Islam.Infobase Publishing. p. 284.
^abLowry, Joseph E (2006). "Lawful and Unlawful". In Jane Dammen McAuliffe (ed.).Encyclopaedia of the Qurʾān. Brill.doi:10.1163/1875-3922_q3_EQCOM_00107.
^"Lawful Foods". Just Islam. Retrieved2 May 2014.Now in the case of Jews this is very easy. As long as the Jew is a practicing Jew and the meat is slaughtered in accordance with Jewish law (Torat Moshe) then this meat and other Kosher food is lawful (halal) and can be eaten by Muslims.
^Karen Pechilis; Selva J. Raj (2013).South Asian Religions: Tradition and Today. Routledge. p. 242.ISBN978-0-415-44851-2.The Sikh Rahit Maryada forbids hair cutting, adultery, the use of intoxicants, and the eating of kutha meat, or meat of an animal or fowl slaughtered slowly.
^"National Halal Centre".National Halal Food Group. National Halal Food Group. 20 August 2012. Archived fromthe original on 8 March 2010. Retrieved20 August 2012.
^"Halal hysteria".New Statesman. 9 May 2012.The stunning of livestock before slaughter has been compulsory in the EU since 1979 but most member states, including the UK, grant exemptions to Muslims and Jews.
^Gezairy HA (17 July 2001)."(Form letter EDB.7/3 P6/61/3)"(PDF). World Health Organization, Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean. Retrieved12 May 2009.
Yungman, Limor, "Food", inMuhammad in History, Thought, and Culture: An Encyclopedia of the Prophet of God (2 vols.), Edited by C. Fitzpatrick and A. Walker, Santa Barbara, ABC-CLIO, 2014, Vol I.
