Difficulties finding Halaal foods in non-Muslim country
27-2-2005 | IslamWeb
Question:
I am living in a non-Muslim country, I am married and I have a daughter (10months), the problem here is I don't know what is Halaal and what is Haraam, I am buying Halaal meat but they have no chicken, so at home we were eating chicken from supermarket and cow meat from Halaal shop, but two weeks ago I stopped eating no Halaal chicken. My wife she became Muslim 3 years ago, and I am always trying to be careful about what is Halaal and Haraam, and giving the good example, but it's difficult here specially when I have to take some decision without making my family life difficult, or when we have to eat somewhere else not at home (restaurant, mc Donald, at work...), or somebody invites us, and what about my kids in future when they have to eat in the school or outside? I am buying to my daughter baby food (nestle bottle) from supermarket which has no Halaal meat because she needs different kind of aliments and because they are not selling it in the Muslim shop. All this things are bothering me and I am the one who has to take a decision, I need to know the right thing, I can't let all this mach bought affect me or my family. Please I really need an answer specially now when the Muslims have different point of view.
Answer:
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger. We ask Allaah to exalt his mention as well as that of his family and all his companions.
Dear brother, we congratulate you on your adherence to the Islamic rulings in your day-to-day life. In fact, a Muslim should take the matter of his religion very seriously since he will be held accountable in front of Allaah for his every deed.
In principle, the meat slaughtered by the people of the Book (Christian and Jews), is allowed. But if they do not cut the throat of the animal and let the blood flow out of the body then the meat is not permissible. For details please read Fataawa: 84072 and 83836.
The ruling of the meat applies to all the items that contain the meat or its substance. If the meat is lawful then any object that contains that meat or its substance is lawful. Food that contains unlawful ingredients is also unlawful.
Allaah knows best.