there are several points you should know
and not confuse: these points are: I-What constitutes Halal meat,
II-Place of origin of Halal meat, and III- Method of slaughtering
animals.
I. What Constitutes Halal Meat: Regarding the first issue, please note
that the issue of Halal and Zabiha meat is a matter that Muslim scholars
have divergent opinions about it. Also, please note that Halal meat
means permissible to be eaten according to Islamic Law while Zabiha meat
refers to meat slaughtered by Muslims according to specific guidelines.
The verses from the Qur’an that some Muslim scholars use to prove that
only Islamically Slaughtered meat (Zabiha) is Halal are found in Surah
al-An’aam (6) verses 118 and 121. As to the verse that some Muslim
scholars use to prove that meat from Christians and Jews is Halal to eat
is found in al-Ma’idah (5) verse 5. Having said this, this is our
guidelines to you:
The subject regarding the meats in non-Muslim country and non-Zabiha
meat is very long and elaborate. We will only give here a very brief
explanation. If you need more information in the future, please write
us. Also, Dr. Ahmad Sakr has written several books about this subject,
i.e., not only about meats, but also about other food, food ingredients,
food additives, and preservatives in the West. You can obtain copies of
his publications directly from the Foundation for Islamic Knowledge:
P.O. Box 665, Lombard Illinois 60148. USA. You may also contact the
Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America. To get its address, also
contact the Foundation for Islamic Knowledge. Now, back to your
question, to give you a yes/no answer, I tend to allow Muslims to eat
non-Zabiha meat (beef, lamb, and chicken, ducks, etc.) if they are
living in non-Muslim countries under certain conditions: 1- that you
know that the meat is from People of the Book i.e. they have to be
Christians or Jews. You cannot eat meats of atheists, polytheists,
pagans, Hindus, Buddhists, or any group that does not have a
monotheistic religion. 2- You should mention the name of Allah before or
while eating. 3-If you actually witness the slaughtering of the animal,
by a non-Muslim or a Muslim person, in a way that is not allowed in
Islam, such as killing the animal by strangling him, or that the animal
died before slaughtering him, or the animal fell from an elevated place,
or that he died through a horn fight, and other restrictions described
in Surah al-Ma’idah (5) verse 3, then don’t eat the meat because it
becomes Haram, and 4- If Islamically slaughtered meat is available, you
should select it; and you should consider the meat of the People of the
Book as a last alternative.
II. Place Of Origin of Halal Meat: Since Islam is the fastest growing
religion in the West, the Muslim community living in predominantly
non-Muslim countries have been able to establish their own slaughter
houses. This is found in North and South America, in Australia, in
Europe, and in many other countries. Actually, many Muslim countries
purchase their meats from these countries and are well aware that the
meat is slaughtered according to Islamic guidelines. This is still not a
reason for Muslims not to check the authenticity of the claims of the
foreign slaughter houses. Therefore, if you are among the Muslims who
take the position that Halal meat is only Zabiha meat, it is still not a
reason to condemn all meat coming from non-Muslims countries because in
many times, non-Muslim slaughter houses hire Muslim butchers to
slaughter the animals.
III. Method of slaughtering animals: As to this issue, the fact that
chicken are slaughtered by electric machines and not manually is not a
reason not to make them Zabiha. In Saudi Arabia, where the largest
poultry farms in the world exist, chicken are also slaughtered by
electrical machines and an Allahu Akbar tape is played allowed to deal
with the issue of mass slaughtering which is no longer practical to be
done manually. Therefore, the method itself on its own is not the issue.
We hope this answer satisfies your needs and clarifies the issue in more
details. Thank you for asking and God knows best.