What is the Shari`ah ruling about buying meats and chicken from American stores, since we do not know the way of slaughtering them? Also, about foods that contain lard? Since we do not know if they contain anything of the pig products, and if we ask the marketing company, it would reply that it does not know?

In the name of Allah the Beneficent the Merciful

Praise be to Allah, prayers and peace be upon His Messenger.

 

The basis in meats of the People of the Book is permissibility, as long as they are slaughtered according to the Shari`ah rules, and not mentioned on them other than the name of Allah. As for the federal law in this country, it necessitates slaughtering and shedding blood for health reasons. However, animals are exposed to something that weaken their movements for resistance, such as electrocution, or hitting fatally, etc. Some of these animals may die in this stage before the slaughterer`s hand reach them. Hence arises the suspicion!

According to information available to us so far, what ducks and chicken are exposed to, hardly kill any of them, accordingly, came the ruling which permits eating them from public stores. As for what are cattle and sheep exposed to, a percentage die of it, and this percentage varies from one slaughter house to another. Sometimes this percentage is so low that it is permissible to eat them, and sometimes it is so high to reach 40%, which means the dead animals are mixed with the slaughtered ones. Hence, came the ruling to avoid eating meats of such animals, and buying be restricted to what Halal stores sell, which are checked to be authentic. Allah knows best.

As for the foods that contain unknown fats, it appears that they are permissible to eat foods of the People of the Book until reasons of prohibiting be available, and the doors of fearing Allah are open for anyone. Allah knows best.