An Islamic Perspective
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JOURNAL OF CRITICAL REVIEWS ISSN- 2394-5125 VOL 7, ISSUE 05, 2020 PRINCIPLES REGARDING THE USE OF HARAM SOURCES IN MODERN FOOD PRODUCTS: AN ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVE Mohd Izhar Ariff Mohd Kashim1,2, Ab Rahman, Z.3*, Ahmad Yunus Mohd Noor2,3, Fariza Md Sham2, Nur Asmadayana Hasim2,4, Mohd Hafiz Safiai1, Mohd Helmy Mokhtar5 & Salasiah Hanin Hamjah6 1Sharia Research Centre, Faculty of Islamic Studies, Faculty of Islamic Studies, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600 Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia. 2Institute of Islam Hadhari, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600 Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia. 3Research Centre for Theology & Philosophy, Faculty of Islamic Studies, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600, Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia. 4Pusat Citra Universiti, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600, Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia 5Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 56000, Cheras, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 6Research Centre for Human and Community Well-being, Faculty of Islamic Studies, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600 Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia. *Corresponding author: [email protected] Received: 28 February 2020 Revised and Accepted: 06 March 2020 ABSTRACT: Nowadays, there are many different types of modern food products that are produced through modern biotech technology. Of these modern food products, some are based on halal ingredients, while others contain sources of najis (impure). Food products that are based on halal resources certainly do not give any rise for concern; however, najis-sourced food products have garnered much debate and attention. Conflict arises when Islamic scholars differ in their perceptions of the permissibility of modern food products. The Shafie and Hanbali schools of thought have prohibited all forms of najis-based food products, notwithstanding the undertaking of the process of istihalah. This is in contrast to the views of the Hanafi and Maliki schools of thought, that have permitted modern food products that are sourced from najis products, given that the process of istihalah has been performed accordingly. Results of this discussion conclude that the views of the Hanafi and Maliki sects are based on strong argumentative factors. Nonetheless, taking the path of ihtiyat (recommended precaution), such that of the Shafie mazhab, is the more preferred and safer practice. KEYWORDS: Blood, DNA, Food, Modern, Biotechnology, Najis. I. INTRODUCTION This study would not be accurate and complete without the discussion of several crucial terms that are usually mentioned in the discussion of modern food products, such as principle, haram, najis and istihalah. The term principle refers to the basis or foundation of a law or theory. For instance, someone who wants to open up a shop, should first learn the basics of running a business (Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2002). In Arabic, the word principle is al-dabit, which, linguistically, denotes the binding of something with an immense strength (Ibn Manzur, 1996). In the context of this discussion, the word al-dabit refers to the establishing of guidelines or principles according to fiqh (Ibn al-Nujaim, n.d; Abdul al-Qadir, 2007; Abdul al-Wahhab, n.d; al-Fayyumi, n.d; al-Sayutiyy, n.d; Kashim, 2017). In his book, Dawabit al-Maslahah, Muhammad Said Ramadhan al-Buti explains that dabit is a clear guideline for Muslims, for a specific law or ruling, that is established with the intent to prevent any forms of doubts or confusion of aspects of fiqh (al-Buti, n.d). He further explained that the word dabit is synonymous with the meaning of al-Shurut: conditions in which an ibadah (act of worship) is performed in accordance with Islamic teachings, thus, rendering it sah (acceptable) from an Islamic perspective (al-Buti, n.d). Therefore, the word dabit is used in this article as a term to refer to the set of clear guidelines and principles regarding products which contain sources of najis, either from animals or the like. Another term used in this discussion is haram, which refers to something that has been prohibited in Islam, without any exceptions (al-Zuhayli, 1995; Kashim, 2018a). The term haram often relates to subjects that are najis (impure), food and consumer goods. The Arabs attributed these two qualities with khabith, which means anything that is 1017 JOURNAL OF CRITICAL REVIEWS ISSN- 2394-5125 VOL 7, ISSUE 05, 2020 unclean and dirty (Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, 2002). In the context of this study and the discussion of food, the term haram is associated with sources containing pigs, carcasses, flowing blood, and animals that have not been slaughtered according to the Islamic requirements. This term is also sometimes associated with wealth derived from haram sources such as riba (usury), robbery, theft and so on. These things are deemed unclean and najis, as they do not please Allah SWT (al-Zuhayli, 1998). The most important term used in this discussion is istihalah, which denotes the process of completely transforming the nature of a substance into another, such that its original characteristic and state is no longer evident (Kashim, 2018b; al-Hattab, 2003). The scholars of the Maliki school of thought hold the view that this word serves as a key word to refer to the process of transforming a substance’s existing feature, to result in a new feature, until the existing feature disappears (al-Hattab, 2003). Scientists, on the other hand, argue that the word istihalah, refers to the process of change that takes place scientifically, either naturally or through chemical processes. For example, the process carried out on substances like oil, animal fat or plants, where its physical nature transforms into that of soap and the likes. The transformed substance is no longer referred to as oil or fats, rather it is now given a different name according to the product that has been artificially produced. The aforementioned process is called istihalah (Che Wan Jasimah, 2000; Kashim, 2019). II. ISTIHALAH IN MODERN BIOTECHNOLOGY PRODUCED FOOD By 2020, Biosafety Department of Malaysia have permitted hundreds of modern biotechnology products (Hasim et al., 2019). The acceptance of biotechnology modern products in Malaysia has been debated among the stakeholders (Hasim et al. 2020). One of the main reasons of this arising issue is the source used in modern biotechnology products. Biotechnology allows all forms of istihalah to be made to an organism at its molecular level. Uncertainty pertaining to its permissibility arises when these transformations occur to organisms which are then used for food, or products from said organisms are used to produce food. In biotechnological terms, animals that have had their DNA modified are referred to as transgenic or genetically modified organisms (GMOs) (Tolin & Vidaver, 2009; Hasim et al., 2020). In most cases, these changes occur at the molecular level and is not physically visible. For illustrative purposes, consider a rice plant which has been genetically modified with the cytochrome P450 gene, derived from a pig (National Institute of Agrobiological Sciences, 2002). The intent behind said transformation is to make the paddy plant resistant to herbicides which, in turn, benefits farmers in their farming duties. Moreover, technologies such as the use of blood plasma in food, have also raised concerns for Muslims worldwide (Mohd Kashim et al., 2017). While said technologies and processes provide various benefits to the industrial and research sectors, the issue on the permissibility of the process as well as its by-products has gained public attention. Animals that are halal, are often also genetically modified. There are two categories of halal products. First category is in respect to animals that are genetically modified by genes derived from animals that are also halal, but said genes were taken in the state where animals were still alive, or not slaughtered according to Islamic requirements. This process can be exemplified in the transgenic fish that carries the genes of a chicken (Ozato et al., 1986), and the transgenic lamb carrying the genes of another lamb (Nancarrow et al., 1987). The second category includes animals that are genetically modified with genes derived from non-halal animals, as can be seen in the transgenic lamb carrying the genes of a mouse (Wall et al., 1995), the transgenic fish carrying the genes of a butterfly (Dunham, 2009), and the transgenic rabbit carrying genes of a mouse (Weidle, Lenz & Brem, 1991). In another instance, rice plants have been reported to be genetically modified by using genes from insects (Giri & Laxmi, 2000). Human genes are also frequently artificially introduced in transgenic animals. The cloning of genes that produce human proteins is crucial for the large-scale production of said proteins, often used for medical purposes. For instance, the human growth hormone introduced into a transgenic rabbit (Limonta et al., 1995), lysine introduced in a sheep such that its milk can contain lysine (Maga et al., 2006), as well as the human produced protein α-lactalbumin produced in the milk of a transgenic cow (Wang et al., 2008). However, in the urge to produce human proteins in animals, animals that are indisputably haram, such as transgenic pigs, are also often used (Park et al., 2006). Said pig is still deemed haram, even though its DNA has been transformed to that of a halal animal. 1018 JOURNAL OF CRITICAL REVIEWS ISSN- 2394-5125 VOL 7, ISSUE 05, 2020 It should be noted that the genes used to produce transgenic animals or plants, are not the original gene molecules from the donor animal, such as pigs. The process of isolation involves several stages, including a series of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and cloning into bacteria. During these two stages, the DNA of the donor, pigs for instance, has been replicated millions of times such that the DNA or the gene that is introduced into the organism is no longer the natural form of the donor DNA (Sambrook, Fritsch & Maniatis, 1989). However, it should be noted that while the synthetic genes used are no longer the pig DNA in its natural state, the properties of the molecules and proteins produced by said genes are still of pig origin.