My letter in response to the following article never got published so Iam sharig with the community.
Letter to Guardian in response to
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/apr/05/france-muslims-halal-boom
Dear Editor
This is a propos of your article “Muslims fuel French halal boom” (April 5),
As a Muslim who grew up in the Indo-Pak sub-continent, I read your column Middle-class “Muslims fuel French halal boom” (April 5), with great interest.
Muslims are allowed to eat only certain animals where the animal is slaughtered in specific ways while reciting the name of God. The meat thus obtained is known as halal (permissible by God). Any meat obtained as a result of any departure from the prescribed slaughter procedure no longer remains halal but becomes haram (forbidden by God). For example, if the head of an animal during its slaughter is separated from the animal’s body (even accidentally) before the animal bleeds to death, that meat then is no longer halal.
Moreover, besides the strict adherence to slaughtering procedure, there are two additional requirements that are equally imperative, and where any departure from meeting those requirements render the halal meat into haram meat.
One of those requirements is that the animal must not be under stress or experience any discomfort prior to its slaughter. The other requirement is that the animal must not be mutilated, deformed, or most importantly diseased when it is ready for slaughter. This is common knowledge among Muslims, and the Islamic law is quite unambiguous about these requirements. The Imams (Muslim Clergies) always ensure that these requirements are met before the animal is slaughtered.
The above article talks about the introduction of halal foie gras for the Muslim market but the term halal foie gras is as much of a deceptive term as halal pork would be. Since swine is haram according to the Islamic law, no matter how closely the Islamic laws are followed in slaughtering a swine its meat will always be haram.
Foie Gras by its very nature does not meet the above two requirements and cannot qualify as halal, no matter how closely the slaughter laws are adhered to.
Ducks and geese raised for foie gras, which means fatty liver in French, are forced fed with pipes that are repeatedly shoved down the birds’ throats, and up to 4 pounds of grain and fat are pumped into their stomachs two to three times every day. The pipes punctured many birds’ throats, sometimes causing animals bleed to death. This cruel procedure causes the birds’ liver to become diseased, known as hepa tic lipidosis, and swell up to 10 times their normal size. Many birds become too sick to stand up. In fact, throughout their lives, the birds suffer excruciating pain and they are sick with a diseased and enlarged liver that can only be considered deformed.
As a result, foie gras does not meet the two requirements of the Islamic law which clearly states that animal before its slaughter must not be under stress or discomfort, and that it must not be diseased and no part of the animal’s body be mutilated or deformed.
The above departures from the Islamic halal law, make the foie gras unquestionably haram. Although, Muslims who happen to eat such a meat without any knowledge of foie gras production may be forgiven in the eyes of God, it is the obligation of the foie gras producers to bring to the knowledge of their Muslim customers how this meat is produced and refrain from the deceptive labeling of halal foie gras.
It is also becomes the duty of every Muslim, who has the knowledge of how foie gras is produced, to bring this information to the attention other Muslims. I would like to see that the procedure of foie gras production is publicly made available, especially to the Imams so that they can issue their “fatwas” on foie gras as haram and spare the Muslims from indulging in an act that is strictly prohibited by the Islamic Law.
Although there is plenty of information available on the topic, the following site gives fair and accurate information on how the foie gras is produced. http://www.goveg.com/feat/foie/
Syed Rizvi
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I'm reminded of a travel documentary that Rick Steves did in southern France. He tasted several different types of foie gras, and visited a goose farm to see how humane the French "delicacy" is. The geese were walking around outside on the gras. It was idyllic. Someone he interviewed said they're very careful about not hurting the geese, and if I remember right he said that the geese are only force fed once a day. It is possible that the tour guide and/or agent picked this one selectively.
ReplyDeleteYesterday when we were protesting at Le Papillon, a French lady energetically told Ellen that the geese are treated very well in France. Ellen responded that Le Papillon doesn't get their foie gras from France, they get it from a California farm where the ducks don't even have water to play in.
It might be true that some of the inhumanity that occurs on duck farms in the US doesn't occur on the typical goose farm in France. But that doesn't change the fact that goose and duck livers aren't normally as fatty as what is sought in liver pates, and that the fattiness that is sought is the symptom of a human-inflicted disease.