Consumption of Stem Cell Meat : An Islamic Perspective

Abstract

Islam provides specific guidelines for meat production and consumption based on halal and hygiene laws. This study mainly focuses on the permissibility of emerging lab-cultivated meat from the Shari’ah perspective. It also examines the notion and significance of halal food (especially meat) within the purview of Islamic jurisprudence and assesses the position of lab-grown meat for Muslim consumers. This work further highlights the underlying reasons behind the prohibition of Haram food and it investigates the production process of in vitro meat to see whether it is done in accordance with Shari’ah guidelines. Furthermore, the study explores consumer rights to halal meat within the ambit of the Shari’ah. The objective of this research is to explore this new kind of meat and evaluate its legitimacy under Islamic law. This will hopefully create awareness in Muslim consumers and create an interest among researchers. The research adopts doctrinal research where the researcher consults relevant literature in the form of books, research articles and reports on the views of experts in the subject matter. This leads to the basic conclusion that whilst Islam supports the use of technology to improve human lives, such use needs to correspond to the promotion and protection of the Maqasid al-Shari’ah.