These Apps Will Help You Verify The Halal Status Of Products You Want To Buy

The fact that a lot of food and cosmetics product manufacturers often use animal derivatives (pig by-products) and ingredients that can be considered unsafe for human consumption in the production of their products means that it is very important for us Muslims (and anybody who wants to live a wholesome life) to check and ensure that the ingredients and the manufacturing processes of the products we buy for consumption are halal and tayyib.

For a product to be considered halal (lawful/permissible), it also has to be tayyib (pure/good). The consumption of only things that are halal and tayyib is clearly stated in the Qur'an:

Qur'an: 2: 168:

"O mankind! eat of that which is halal (lawful) and tayyib (good) on the earth, and follow not the footsteps of shaytan (satan). Verily, he is to you an open enemy."

Tayyib is an Arabic word which is derived from taa-ya-ba (ط ي ب) which literally means to be good, pleasant and lawful. The word ‘tayyib’ itself means to be good, clean, wholesome, excellent, fair and lawful. From these meanings we get the general meaning for tayyib as anything that is good and pure.

Abu Hurayrah (May GOD be pleased with him) one of the companions of the Prophet (Peace be upon him) reported that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) said:

"Indeed ALLAH is the Good, far removed from any Imperfection, and He only accepts that which is good."

So, for example, cosmetics products that might not even contain any pig by-products but that contain chemicals that might be harmful to the body are not tayyib and therefore are haram. Another example is meat, in order for meat to be considered halal and tayyib for consumption, there are a number of specifications to take into consideration. Apart from the well known fact that it cannot be pork nor any of its derivatives, it also cannot be road kill, an animal that was already dead nor an animal that was slaughtered as a sacrifice to any being other than GOD:

Quran 6:145:  

"Say (O Muhammad) "I find not in that which has been revealed to me anything forbidden to be eaten by one who wishes to eat it, unless it be Maitah (a dead animal) or blood poured forth (by slaughtering or the like), or the flesh of swine (pork); for that surely is impure or impious (unlawful), meat (of an animal which is slaughtered as a sacrifice for others than ALLAH (or has been slaughtered for idols or on which ALLAH's name has not been mentioned while slaughtering). But whosoever is forced by necessity without wilful disobedience, nor trangressing due limits; (for him) certainly, your Lord is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful."

In addition to the above, the cause of death of the animal or the process through which the animal was slaughtered also determines its halal or haram status:

Qur'an:5:3:

"Forbidden to you (for food) are Al-Maitah (the dead animals not slaughtered), blood, the flesh of swine, and that on which ALLAH's name has not been mentioned while slaughtering, and that which has been killed by strangling, or by a violent blow, or by a headlong fall, or by the goring of horns, and that which has been partly eaten by a wild animal, unless you are able to slaughter it (before its death), and that which is sacrificed on An-Nusub (stone-altars). (Forbidden) also is to use arrows seeking luck or decision; (all) that is fisqun (disobedience of ALLAH and sin).  This day, those who disbelieved have given up all hope of your religion; so fear them not but fear me (ALLAH). This day, have I perfected your religion for you, completed my favour upon you, and have chosen for you, Islam as your religion. But as for him who is forced by severe hunger, with no inclination to sin (such can eat these above mentioned meats), then surely, ALLAH is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful."

One of Prophet Muhammad's (Peace be upon him) companions, Ibn Abbas (May GOD be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) saw a man who was sharpening his knife after laying down a sheep to be slaughtered. He rebuked him saying, “Did you intend to make it die two deaths? Why did you not sharpen your knife before laying it down?” - Al-Hakim.

The following are other hadiths of Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) in relation to the lawful manner of rearing and slaughtering animals for consumption:

"ALLAH has ordained kindness (or excellence) in everything. If killing is to be done, do it in the best manner, and when you slaughter, do it in the best manner by first sharpening the knife and putting the animal at ease." -  (Muslim).

“The worst of shepherds is the ungentle, who causes the beasts to crush or bruise one another.” (Muslim).

Therefore in order for the meat of an halal animal to be considered halal and tayyib for consumption:

- The name of GOD has to be pronounced upon it at the time of slaughter,
- the animal should have been reared in a humane environment and in a kind manner,
- the animal should not be Maitah (a dead animal not slaughtered),
- the animal should not feel any pain at the time of slaughter,
- the animal should not be made aware of the fact that it is about to be slaughtered,
- the animal should be slaughtered and not strangled nor killed with blunt weapons,
- the animal should not have died by a violent blow, the goring of horns nor as a result of being partly eaten by a wild animal.

It is the responsibility of every Muslim to check and confirm the halal and tayyib status of the food and products to be consumed and some companies have created apps to help ease the process of research.

VERIFY HALAL:

Verify Halal allows consumers to make an informed decision when shopping for their Halal products. Consumers can either scan or search for product, brand, company or country of their choice.

According to its app store description, "Listed products are all certified by certification bodies that are all accredited and recognised by JAKIM. The status of halal and authenticity of the information contained are based on the guidelines and registry of accredited, certified and approved division of JAKIM’s Halal Hub Division, which in turn maintains the updated live Halal directory for Malaysia as well as JAKIM’s certified Foreign Halal Certification Body."

The app can be used by consumers in South Africa, India, Malaysia, Brunei, Taiwan, Thailand and Indonesia.

SCAN HALAL:

The following is Scan Halal's app store description: "Scan Halal is the largest halal food organization bringing transparency to the halal food industry and providing valuable and much-needed information readily available at their fingertips to make better informed halal dietary choices. Scan Halal was born out of frustration with reading through all the long worded hard to pronounce time consuming ingredients that so many of us muslims struggle with every day.

We handle the complicated stuff, so you don't have to. Simply scan the barcode (UPC/EAN) of the product you wish to consume and within seconds our app will breakdown the sources of ingredients (plant, animal, synthetic, etc) and display the halal status. Our app service is trusted by millions of muslims and other halal consumers who rely upon Scan Halal everyday.

Made by the team at scanhalal.org. There’s lots of work that goes on behind the scenes, working around the clock at Scan Halal to make sure things are running smoothly. Our team of food technologists, nutritionist, and auditors have a strong understanding in food matters and a wealth of industry experience that work endlessly to serve both the Muslim community and Halal Certification Industry.

To learn more, you can also visit scanhalal.org

This app currently supports U.S.A & Canada Products.
U.K, France, & Germany release coming soon!"

HALAL CHECK:

The halal check app also makes it easy to check the halal status of a product but it also includes the Qur'an with audio, the 99 names of ALLAH and their meanings and 24 hours live streaming of Makkah and Madinah.