Some thoughts on adulterated food and haram ingredients

To a citizen of a Muslim majority country, it is expected that the government will take care of the food items released on the national market to meet the requirements of halal food. Also some consideration should be put on cosmetic products. But sadly our BSTI has failed to confirm that each and every product approved by them is halal. The blame should be on the lack of knowledge of the people concerned certifying the products. Not just pork and alcohol items are haram to a Muslim. There are many products and by-products and flavourings used in food processing that borders on being haram.

Since I am not proficient in the science of food processing I would refrain from going into details. But I would just like to caution those Muslim brothers and sisters who are cautious about what products they consume that many of our regular food products contain haram ingredients. Many a food colouring is derived from haram sources, also lots of food flavours use alcohol as a solvent. Another big concern is gelatin, used in many processed food, which can only be obtained from animal sources. If the gelatin is obtained in Bangladesh from properly slaughtered (according to Muslim laws) animal then there is no problem. But if it is imported, as I suppose most of them are, we should beware of. Because non-Muslim nations not only slaughter their animals by machine, they also consume pig and such animals which are haram for Muslims. Since pig is abundant in US and European countries, their main source of animal gelatin comes from pig. Also pig is the largest source of animal fat used in many food and cosmetic products.

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I hope BSTI will keep an open eye on the subject of haram ingredients, if any, used in Bangladeshi food products. But what about foreign food items plastering our market? How can we be sure they are all made of halal ingredients? Shouldn't BSTI (or whatever government department concerned with legalising foreign food products) be concerned about that subject too?

Recent raids in many Chinese restaurants procured many foreign food items not necessarily made of halal ingredients. One example is Kikomen Soy Sauce (made in USA) which is not a halal product because it is made just like wine and contains 1-3 percent alcohol. If properly researched we will come up with hundreds of such products flooding our markets and our homes.

For the time being I can recommend the readers to look for either Kosher (used by the Jews) or halal signs in foreign products. Since Jews are also very fastidious of what kind of food they consume, they came up with this labeling system used in USA and European countries (along with many other parts of the world) to notify the consumer that the product has been processed to meet the requirements of Jewish laws. Since Muslims have many similar laws regarding the food, we can consume most of the kosher foods.

So next time you buy a foreign food product look for a small K or U or KD or UD either inside a circle or without one in the food packaging. Usually they are written in very small letters near the product name or where the net weight of the product is stated. Sometimes it is at the back side of the product in some corners. For Example, in the container of Pringles Potato Crisps the kosher sign UD (the U inside a circle) is written at the lower end of the container, just above the net weight line, near where Potato Crisps are written. But we should also remember that not all kosher foods are halal. Kosher foods containing gelatin, L-Cysteine which is derived from human hair, Dijon mustard and vanilla extract, wine vinegar, soy sauce are not halal. For details you may visit www.muslimconsumer-group.com. They have a page (click the "Food" button, then "Halal food selection") which teaches you how to select halal foods. Also the FAQ (Frequently asked questions) is very helpful. You may also send your questions to halalfoods-@hotmail.com. This is a free service for the benefit of the Muslim Ummah.

Upon practice you will soon learn to recognize many food ingredients that are not halal for us. And I hope this article will draw light upon concerned people to be on the lookout for not only adulterated foods processed or cooked in unhygienic way but also foods made with haram ingredients. And is it too much to ask for BSTI to also issue "halal" sign for those products that meet proper Islamic laws?