Do We Need to Investigate If Food Is Served Halal in Airlines, Hotels, and Restaurants?

Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel

Question

Turkish Airlines states their food has been prepared according to Islamic Guidelines, and food in Turkey is just said to be halal.

My question is, how far do we need to investigate in order to assume halal and consume legally? Can we take their word for it 1) the airlines and 2) the hotels and restaurants that say we serve halal?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.

I pray you are in good faith and health. Thank you for your question.

Reputable Muftis and senior Fuqaha say it is permissible to eat meat dishes from a Muslim airline of a Muslim country. If the airline is from a non-Muslim country, it is not permissible. However, mindfulness (taqwa) and caution is to refrain, even if it states it is halal, unless certified by a reputable certifying body. [Qasimi, Fatawa Qasimiyya]

Muslim passengers and travel agents are urged to petition the respective airlines to implement guaranteed halal catering arrangements by a reputable and certified body that is not lax in their standards of certification and slaughter requirements.

However, in all of the above cases, caution is the best way, as there are other options available that one can choose and go by with.

Leave that Makes You Doubt

Hasan ibn ‘Ali (Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) said, “Leave what makes you doubt for what does not make you doubt. Verily, truth brings peace of mind, and falsehood sows doubt.” [Tirmidhi]

Summary

In Muslim-majority countries, you will still need to do basic research. However, the main issue is with chicken and the like, which can be machine-slaughtered and imported from abroad without proper certification. Lambs, cows, etc., are not slaughtered by machines due to their size, so they can be consumed.

Whether you are in a Muslim-majority country or elsewhere, be cautious about where your food is coming from. You do not have to investigate any company deeply, but basic research by asking the local scholars and righteous Muslims or call will suffice. Stay away from any companies that use machine slaughtering. If the food is beef, lamb, or the like, just look for a basic certification that it is halal, especially in a Muslim-majority company.

I would like you to go through the valuable answers and links below. You will receive guidance and direction, in sha’ Allah.

Related:

• Halal and Haram and Living Prophetic Excellence (Hanafi). [Highly Recommended Course]
• The Issue of Halal Meat (A Detailed Article)
• A Guide for Consuming Various Meats, Foods, Alcohol, Animal By-Product Ingredients, and Cosmetics.

Why not begin your search for knowledge by signing up for a course on SeekersGuidance?

I pray this helps with your question.
Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally-trained scholar who has studied in the UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, and Turkey. He started his early education in the UK. He went on to complete the hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled in an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and ‘Aalimiyya sciences. He then traveled to Karachi, Pakistan. He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Quran, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to children and adults onsite and online extensively in the UK and Ireland. He taught at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK, where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences. He currently resides in the UK with his wife. His interest is a love of books and gardening.