Is the meat we eat still halal ?
MAJORITY of Pakistan’s population believes in Islam. Although meat in take in Islam is allowed, it has been condemned to over indulge and while many in the country think that not eating meat means you will renounce Islam, this is simply not the case.
Whether going out to a restaurant, ordering food online or having a meal with family and friends, a vegetarian or vegan is always faced with very limited options in Pakistan.
It seems that we have become a nation who cannot enjoy a meal without the presence of meat in it.
Yahya ibn Sa’id reported Umar ibn al-Khattab (May Allah be pleased with him) said: ‘Beware of meat, for meat can be as addictive as wine’.
Source: al-Muwatòtòa’ 1742
Contrary to Islamic teachings, animal cruelty is most prevalent in countries where Islam is the major religion.
A lot of the population still only sees the conditions the animal is slaughtered in as a means to determine whether it is halal or haram; however, animals are treated poorly during production, handling, transport and slaughter.
Being opposed to the teachings of Islam, this makes one wonder if the animals devoured are still halal or have become makrooh (detestable or abominable).
Still yet, one finds it hard to come across people who ponder upon where their meat came from, how the animal was raised and treated while it was alive and what conditions it was slaughtered under in the country.
Some forms of animal cruelty are apparent everyday. For example, during the transport of chickens, they are crammed into tiny cages and thus are hampered from movement, including being able to stand.
They are moved in the sunlight, causing them stress and if one observes carefully, one can identify a number of injuries on the animals.
Chickens are treated as production units and their welfare is completely disregarded in farms as well. Chickens are raised in huge, crowded sheds or cramped cages. Due to the conditions they are kept in, they are prone to disease as well as stress.
We have failed to provide chickens the natural living conditions these active and curious beings deserve and have begun to view them as inanimate objects which only exist to be served on our plates.
Animals often undergo painful mutilation at the hands of vendors either to deceive consumers or to meet their requirements.
Consumers are more likely to buy bulls and goats void of horns to bring into their homes; Hence, especially around Eid-ul-Azha, animals are subjected to the painful practice of dehorning – a process by which the horns of animals are removed with the help of tools such as a saw or by throwing acid on them.
Furthermore, bulls and goats often have their teeth removed by vendors in order to deceive customers concerning their age.
Cows are subjected to intense milk production for profit, wearing them out before they are sent for slaughter. Goats and cows are subjected to various diseases and are often not handled according to Islamic teachings during the time of slaughter.
Cows are often beaten down by a stick in order to wear them down at the time of slaughter or like other animals, are slaughtered with knives which are not sharp enough, prolonging the animal’s death and making it more painful.
Fish have brains very different from humans, making it hard to determine if and how they feel pain.
Studies do however, agree that fish feel stress and have an instinctive urge to fight or flee when in a stressful state such as being targeted by a predator. It can take anywhere between 5 minutes to a few hours of struggling in the open air before a fish finally dies.
Pondering upon the conditions in which the animals on our plates are raised and slaughtered is almost non-existent in Pakistan.
In developed nations, where awareness about the mistreatment of animals for their meat and products is common, many people have not only become vegetarian but have converted to vegan diets out of concern of how animals are treated while they are alive.
This has forced food chains to introduce alternatives such as vegan cheese, vegetarian burgers and beyond meat burgers, whose patties taste just like meat.
It is difficult to comprehend that animals raised and slaughtered under such conditions could still be Halal.
There is therefore an urgent need to sensitize Muslims, especially in developing countries such as Pakistan, to the teachings of animal welfare in the Quran and the Hadith.
If consumers keep buying animal meat and their products without giving it a second thought, these practices will continue and animals will continue to suffer.
It is therefore vital that we raise awareness about the animal cruelty that takes place for us to eat meat and become responsible consumers, who demand alternatives such as beyond meat in restaurants, which have the exact same taste as meat but could save sentient beings from a lot of suffering.
—The writer is associated with the National Institute of Maritime Affairs (NIMA) and contributes to the national press occasionally.
