Guidelines for a Muslim abattoir
Q:
- What are the Shar'iee conditions in order for the slaughter to be valid in Shari'ah?
- Are machine cut chickens Halaal in Shari'ah? If Halaal, what are the Shar'iee laws governing this mas'ala? Similarly explain that if the machine slaughters many chickens at one time, what is the shar’ee ruling regarding the meat?
- I wish to inquire about the scalding process at the chicken factories. The slaughtered chickens are immersed (whilst still bleeding with the intestines, impurities etc.) into a hot water tank for softening the feathers etc. This water is filthy and some of the impurities are possibly absorbed into the flesh. Approximately 500 to 700 birds at a time could be in this hot water at
any point in time, where it remains for approximately 5 minutes. How does this process affect the status of the meat? Does the meat remain halaal or does it become makrooh or haraam for Muslim consumption? - We are in the process of opening an abattoir in our area to provide halaal meat and facilitate the needs and requirements of the Muslim community. We would be grateful if you could guide us in this regard. If there are any other issues in relation to the masaail of slaughter, apart from the above mentioned three questions, we would be appreciative if you could also apprise us regarding it?