Fatwas

Fatwa is an Arabic word and means "opinion". In a religious context, the word fatwa carries more meaning. This is because when a Muslim has a question that needs to be answered from an Islamic point of view, he asks an Islamic scholar that question, and the answer is known as a fatwa, which will have more relevance than anyone's random opinion. Islamic scholars are expected to give their fatwa based on religious evidence, not based on their personal opinions. Therefore, their fatwa is sometimes considered a religious rule. Therefore, a fatwa is a legal pronouncement issued by an expert in Islamic Jurisprudence (Shariah) on a specific issue.

In Islam, there are four sources from which Muslim scholars draw religious laws or rulings and on which they base their fatwa. The first is the Qur'an, which is the holy book of Islam, and which is the direct and literal word of Allah, revealed to Prophet Mohammad (ﷺ). The second source is the Sunnah, which incorporates everything that the Prophet Mohammad (ﷺ) said, did, or approved. The third source is the consensus of scholars, which means that if all scholars from a previous generation agreed on a particular issue, then that consensus is considered to represent Islam. Finally, if no evidence is found regarding a specific issue from the first three sources, then an Islamic scholar performs what is known as ijtihad. This means that they use their logic and reasoning to arrive at the best answer to the best of their ability.

Fatwas about Alcohol

Scientific Research Committee - Islam Today.net

In chemistry, alcohol is a general term that is applied to any organic compound in which a hydroxyl group (-OH) is attached to a carbon atom, which in turn is attached to another hydrogen atom and/or carbon atoms. In chemistry, the term does not refer to intoxicating beverages, as it is spoken of colloquially. Numerous chemicals are referred to as alcohol in chemistry. There is no Islamic legislation against alcohol as a chemical group (see the topic on Najassah). Islamic law prohibits intoxicating and intoxicating beverages, not alcohols. There is no mention of the term "alcohol" in the sacred texts. The sacred texts refer to wine and intoxicating drinks.

The intoxicating substance contained in drinks such as wine, beer, and others is known as ethanol. Ethanol is what is meant by the term "alcohol" in everyday speech. Ethanol is the alcohol commonly used in cooking and food preparation.

The decision on whether to use foods containing ethanol among their ingredients depends on the amount of ethyl alcohol remaining in the food. 

For more information on this, see the following fatwa: "Foods Containing Alcohol, Intoxicants".

  Besides the alcohols mentioned above, there are other alcohols, especially fatty (heavy) alcohols, and sugar alcohols, that are used as food additives. For example, sodium lauryl sulfate is a derivative of a chemical process known as lauryl alcohol (dodecanol). It is used primarily in soaps and detergents but can be found in some foods as an emulsifier. However, lauryl alcohol - which is sometimes used as a flavoring agent - is not the intoxicating beverage alcohol. It is derived from fatty acids in coconut oil. Some sugar alcohols such as sorbitol and xylitol are used as sweeteners. Common sugar alcohol used as a food additive is glycerin. There is no religious support for any of these chemicals being illegal as food additives, unless they come from illegal sources, as may be the case with glycerin being of animal origin, and sometimes from an animal that is considered illicit. And God knows best.

Source: http://en.islamtoday.net

Fatwa of Alcohol Traceability in Food and Beverage

Fatwa and Research Department Committee - Chaired by Sheikh Abdul-Wahhab Al-Turayrî. 

(Former Professor at Al Imam University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.)

Sheikh Salman Al-Oadah states the following: Alcohol is forbidden because it intoxicates. The exact percentage of alcohol in food and drink does not affect the ruling. The ruling applies to the food or drink if taken as a whole, not its composition. In any case, this small percentage of alcohol generally does not affect a person consuming the product.

The Prophet (ﷺ) said: "Khamr was forbidden per se in small or large quantities, as was every kind of intoxicating drink" Sunan an-Nasa'i 5684.      As long as the food or drink in question does not intoxicate, even consumed in large quantities, then it is not forbidden. The only other possible objection that can be raised against such a product is that alcohol is considered an impure substance according to some scholars (see the topic on Najassah).

However, it is a principle established in Islamic Law that minute quantities of an impurity that are completely submerged in pure substances, do not turn a pure substance into an impure substance.  The amount of alcohol in such a product is usually so small as to be effectively non-existent, as far as purification issues are concerned. And God knows best.

Source: http://en.islamtoday.net

Fatwa on Alcohol in soft drinks 

Source: INFAD, Islamic Science University of Malaysia - September 26, 2004

Some soft drinks contain a small amount of alcohol that helps add flavors (aromas) that are considered part of what is known as trade secrets. According to the rules of Islamic jurisprudence on food and drink, if a small amount of alcohol is added to food, it does not make the food or drink forbidden.

According to the Fatwa issued by the Fiqh Council of North America: It is known that some soft drinks, such as Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Cola, among their ingredients, contain a small amount of alcohol, which is used to dissolve some components of the drinks (such as color, flavor, etc.). Coca-Cola and Pepsi-Cola, for example, contain different types of flavorings and flavoring, which are part of the trade secrets of these drinks. These flavors, when dissolved in alcohol, are no more than two or three parts in a thousand (0.03-0.02%) of these drinks.

Such soft drinks are considered permissible or Halal from an Islamic point of view, according to the food and beverage rules in Islamic jurisprudence.

This permissibility follows the concept mentioned above in that if a small amount of a prohibited substance X is mixed with a dominant permissible substance Y, substance X loses all its attributes, such as taste, color, and smell, losing the original characteristics that qualified it as impure and prohibited because it was dissolved in substance Y.

This conclusion is supported by a ruling of Imam Ibn Taymmiah in his book Al-Fatawa (21/502) and by the recommendations of the Fiqh Ninth Seminar of Medicine of the Islamic Organization of Medical Science, which met in Ad-Dar Al-Bayda ' in Morocco in June 1997. In addition to this, the Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America adds, "In the food industry, alcohol is the second common solvent after water. Some of the flavors, such as vanilla, cannot be obtained without the use of alcohol. One cannot imagine foods and drinks such as ice cream, cakes, cookies, soft drinks, etc., without the use of alcohol as an extraction agent for these flavors, so it has become an unavoidable impurity in food systems. Islamic countries, which import food products, accept foods containing small amounts of alcohol.”

FAMBRAS HALAL establishes two control points for alcohol in foods and ingredients:

1. Less than 0.1 % in final food products.

2. Less than 0.5 % in food ingredients

In levels higher than those established, alcohol in food cannot be detected by taste, smell, or visibly, these guidelines are placed for food industries that will obtain Halal certification for their products. Therefore, when drawing an individual line for the Muslim consumer, we should base ourselves on the available knowledge and for their religious commitment.

Source: http://knowledge.hdcglobal.com

Fatwa on Vinegar obtained from wine 

Vinegar is a well-known staple food, made from a wine with altered composition so that it is no longer sweet, but acidic or sour. 

Jaabir (ra) reported that the Prophet (ﷺ). said: “What an excellent condiment vinegar is.” (Muslim, 2052a). 

When wine turns to vinegar by itself, without any deliberate treatment to change it, it is allowed to eat, drink and handle it, according to the consensus of the sages/students, because of the Hadith (sayings) quoted above.

But whether the wine became vinegar because of deliberate treatment, by adding vinegar, onion, salt, etc.; or by any other process, scholars/sages differ as to whether or not it is permissible for Muslim consumption. 

Imam Shafi'i, Hanbalis and some Malikis say that deliberate alteration of wine to vinegar is not permitted because they are not pure. The evidence (Daleel) for this opinion is from the account of the Prophet's companion, Anas Ibn Malik (ra) who said, "The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was asked if wine could be changed to be used like vinegar. He said, "No, it is forbidden." (Muslim, 1983).

Abu Talha (ra) reported that Prophet Mohamad (ﷺ) was asked about some orphans who had inherited some wine. He said, "Throw it away." He asked, "Couldn't we not turn it into vinegar?" He said, "No" (Sunan Abi Dawud 3675).

The reason for that:

Allah , May He be Glorified and Exalted, has commanded us to avoid wine. Keeping it and treating it until it turns into vinegar, means that handling it and having contact with it, storing it, and having any benefit from it is not allowed.

 It is allowed for a Muslim to buy vinegar from someone who is selling it unless he realizes or knows that it has been deliberately processed. "Omar (ra) said, "......There is nothing wrong with a man buying vinegar from the people of the book, even if they sell it and do not know about the deliberative process from the wine." (Al-Mughni, 8/330). And Allah knows best.

Source: http://islamqa.info/en/2283 

Fatwa on Cochineal

Decision on the Use of Cochineal Dye:

A Review of the Standards Established by the Fatwa Dialogue of the Malaysian National Islamic Fatwa and Religious Affairs Council Committee.

The Malaysian National Fatwa Council considers that the cochineal is a type of insect (female), which is harmless, and any dye substance produced from it can be used by humans lawfully. In its 1985 food standards, the status of the Crimson Dye extracted from the cochineal is allowed, based on Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP).

Most Muslim jurists unanimously agreed that insects killed without bloodshed are considered pure, with the understanding that cochineal dye, extracted from the insect (female), is equally pure. Based on this, it is understood by this council that any use of cochineal dye in food, drinks, and products is permissible and that the number allowed for use should be following the guidelines provided by the Malaysian Ministry of Health.

Decision:

The 37th Conference (Muzakarah) of the Committee of the National Islamic Fatwa and Religious Affairs Council of Malaysia, held on March 23, 1995, discussed the decision on food coloring in Islam. The Committee agreed and approved the use of food coloring (cochineal) in the food according to the approved standard, which is not more than 0.003% - 0.006%.

Evidences / Arguments:

Cochineal dye is extracted from a species of a small insect. This insect is either boiled (to produce a reddish-brown color) or cooked in a hot oven (producing ash) or in a hot frying pan (producing black) and then dried. 5 kg of mealybugs can produce 1 kg of mealybug dye.

Cochineal comes from Central America and Mexico. Its use in food after being used in the process becomes little, around 0.003% - 0.006%.

Cochineal is used to kill toxic microorganisms and is not harmful to humans and there are no side effects.

According to the opinion of Imam Malik and Abu Hanifa in Hasyiah I'anah al-Talibin chapter 1, pages 89-90, the use of these insects is permitted because it is a type of insect (animal) that the does not flow blood.

The use of these insects as a source of dye is not harmful to humans and do not contain any substances that can cause harm.

At the Islamic Law Review Panel Meeting starting at 11:00 a.m. on May 14 and 15, 1994, it decided that "the use of dyes (cochineal) in food is necessary.

Part 1 

Source: http://www.e-fatwa.gov.my/fatwa-kebangsaan/hukum-bahan-pewarna-cochineal-kajian-semula-kadar-piawaian-yang-ditetapkan-oleh-muz

Part 2 

Source: http://www.e-fatwa.gov.my/fatwa-kebangsaan/hukum-bahan-pewarna-cochineal-dalam-islam