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HALAL SLAUGHTER AND
MEAT QUALITY
Prof. Dr. Javaid Aziz Awan
Halal Resear Council
www.halalrc.org
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INTRODUCTION
Meat indispensable for sound human
health
Provides several essential nutrients:
Proteins
Essential amino acids
Mineral elements
Vitamins
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INTRODUCTION
Meat subject to spoilage by:
Chemical reactions
Biochemical reactions
Biological agents, including bacteria
and moulds
Responsible for food-borne diseases
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INTRODUCTION
Hence meat be produced so as to:
Minimize chemical and biochemical
changes
Prevent chances of microbial
contamination and growth
Preserve quality
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Slaughtering
the Muslim way
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SELECTION OF ANIMALS
“Forbidden to you (for food) are: dead meat,
blood, the flesh of swine, and that on
which hath been invoked the name of
other than God; that which hath been
killed by strangling, or by a violent blow, or
by a head long fall, or by being gored to
death; that which hath been partly eaten
by a wild animal, unless ye are able to
slaughter it (in due form) ……………….
(Al Maida - V:4)
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SELECTION OF ANIMALS
Islam permits consumption of few animals
and birds only
Strictly prohibited:
Pork
Blood
Carrion
Dead animals
All carnivorous animals
All birds of prey
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SELECTION OF ANIMALS
Permitted animals:
All herbivorous, even-toed ruminants
Animal for Halal slaughter be:
Healthy
Free from any apparent or
hidden disease
Must be legally owned
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PRE-REQUISITES FOR
SLAUGHTER in islam
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PRE-REQUISITES FOR SLAUGHTER
Slaughtering of lawful animals and birds
essential to prepare for food purposes
Pre-slaughter management and bleeding
methods regulated by:
religious practices and
legislations
Ahadith by the Holy Prophet (pbuh) guide us
on handling, care and slaughter of animals
These guidelines over 14 centuries old
Modern science just testified implications
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PRINCIPLES OF HALAL SLAUGHTER
Islamic method of slaughtering - based on
two important principles:
Tasmiya - invoking name of Allah slaughter being done with His
permission
Tazkiyah - means purification
This in accordance with several
commands given in the Holy Quran and
Ahadith
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PRINCIPLESD OF HALAL
SLAUGHTER - TASMIYA
Tasmiya means invoking the name of Allah on
the animal or bird being slaughtered
Allah’s name may be invoked as:
Subhan Allah, or
La illaha illila ho, or
Allah-o-Akbar or
Bismillah Allah-o-Akbar
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HALAL SLAUGHTER REQUIREMENTS
Tazkiyah means purification - cleaning
meat of blood
Consumption of blood prohibited in Holy
Scriptures:
Holy Bible - Leviticus 3:17 and 7:26
Holy Quran – Al Anaam - VI:146
All lawful animals and birds contain blood
Blood must be drained as per these
commands
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HALAL SLAUGHTER REQUIREMENTS
Slaughtering rules apply to animals and
birds in complete physical control of man
Any animal or bird gone wild and cannot
be reached or caught, falls under
category of ‘game animal’ - different
rituals apply
Camel slaughtered by ‘nahr’ - Involves
piercing throat with sharp, spear-like
instrument while standing
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SLAUGHTERING
PROCESS in islam
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ESSENTIALS OF HALAL
SLAUGHTERING
The Holy Prophet (pbuh) gave
comprehensive guidelines on slaughtering
of animals in following Hadith:
“Verily Allah, has prescribed proficiency in
all things. Thus, if you kill, kill well; and if
you slaughter, slaughter well. Let each
one of you sharpen his blade and let him
spare suffering to the animal he
slaughters.”
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HALAL SLAUGHTERING - Slaughterer
Process of slaughtering in Islam consolidated
Slaughterer:
must be adult Muslim or
one who believes in Holy Scriptures
should be in possession of his mental
faculties
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SLAUGHTERING INSTRUMENT
The Holy Prophet (pbuh) advised
companions to use very sharp instrument
Further instructed that sharpening of
knife not be performed in front of slaying
animal – avoid excitement
and nervousness
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ANIMAL POSITIONING
Lay animal (except camel) on its left flank,
preferably facing Kibla
Recite name of Allah:
Subhan Allah, or
La illaha illila ho, or
Allah-o-Akbar or
Bismillah Allah-o-Akbar
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ESSENTIALS OF HALAL
SLAUGHTERING
Give quick incision using very sharp knife
on front of the neck to severe:
Wind pipe
Oesophagus
Carotid arteries
Jugular veins
Prohibited - practice of cutting off part of
an animal or removing its skin while still
alive
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REST PRIOR TO SLAUGHTERING
Islam promotes calm and rested animals
prior to slaughtering:
 Not fatigued
 Not excited
 Not nervous
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STRESS PRIOR TO SLAUGHTERING
Prohibited - any act that causes neurosis
or excitement or other abnormal
behavioural changes in animal
Prohibited in Islam - Practice of collective
slaughtering - other animals do not view
their companion being killed
Research reveals
practices inhumane
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SCIENTIFIC
EVIDENCE
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Stress prior to slaughtering
Generally regarded undesirable that
animal awaiting slaughter view
slaughtering process – causes stress
Animals under stress - lead to:
Undue emotional instability
Fatigue
Anorexia, etc.
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Stress prior to slaughteringScientific evidence
Discharge hormones from adrenal glands:
adrenaline from adrenal medulla
17 hydroxy- and 11-deoxycorticosterones from adrenal cortex
Hormones deplete muscle glycogen and
potassium
Deleterious effects on meat quality
To prevent these adverse effects,
tranquilizers recommended to calm
stocks in transit.
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Rest prior to slaughtering –
Scientific evidence
Modern methods require animal prior to
slaughtering not be subjected to:
Stress
Fatigue
Neurotic
Otherwise excited
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Rest prior to slaughtering –
Scientific evidence
Rough handling of animals in preslaughter period adversely affects meat
quality
Result - dark, firm and dry meat (dark
cutting meat)
Fatigued or starved animals
 Organisms from gut may invade blood
stream and eventually muscles
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Rest prior to slaughtering –
Scientific evidence
Proper relaxation before slaughtering:
Helps animal to bleed well – better
eating and keeping quality of meat
Builds up muscle glycogen essential to
lower pH of meat
Increases storage life by reducing
chances of microbial growth
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Rest prior to slaughtering –
Scientific evidence
Improves taste due to conditioning/
tenderness
Helps delay or reduce fermentation in
stomach
 may otherwise give meat
characteristic smell known as ‘bone
taint’
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FEEDING THE ANIMALS
Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) advised
that animals destined for slaughtering be:
well fed
provided with drinking water
 Preferable that animals have free access
to feed and water prior to slaughtering
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FEEDING THE ANIMALS – SCIENTIFIC
EVIDENCE
Two schools of thoughts:
Animal to remain hungry - Fasting
Animal be well fed
Fasting animals - Fasting animals before
slaughter recommended in modern
abattoirs
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FEEDING THE ANIMALS –
SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE
Fasting animals - Advantages claimed:
 Bleed better
 Carcass easier to dress
 Carcass has brighter appearance
 Reduced bulk of animal’s stomach
 Reduced chances of bacterial
contamination from gut
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FEEDING THE ANIMALS – SCIENTIFIC
EVIDENCE
Fasted animals - Disadvantages:
Loss in weight of carcass and liver
Lower glycogen reserves in muscles
Reduced gustative quality of meat
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FEEDING THE ANIMALS –
SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE
Well-fed animals:
Glycogen level in muscle reaches higher level
Ensures production of adequate lactic acid
Lowers pH of meat
Such meat has good:
Appearance
Taste
Tenderness
Longer shelf-life
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FEEDING THE ANIMALS –
SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE
Meat spoilage bacteria prefer growth at high pH
levels - around pH 7.0
Meat of soothed and well-fed animals:
pH attains 5.5 or even lower level
Meat of fatigued or neurotic animals:
pH varies from 6.5 to 7.0
Feeding animals prior to slaughtering often
recommended to produce good quality meat
In some cases sugar solution fed to quickly
restore glycogen level in tissues
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
Conventionally, slaughtering process
consists of two to three different stages
Depends on religious practices and
legislations
Posture of animal and bleeding method
governed by religious and national
legislations
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
Modern method - Stunning
Western countries require animals be
stunned
Stunning widely practiced in Western
abattoirs:
To make animal unconscious for gentle
and painless death
No standard method for all animals under
all conditions
Muslims & Jews not in favour of stunning
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE –
Modern method - Stunning
Stunning Methods:
Pole-axe
Free bullet
Captive bolt pistol
Concussion stunner
Electrical stunning
Carbon dioxide anesthesia
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
Modern method - Stunning
Stunning effective in having calm animal
Stunning may adversely affect quality of
carcass
cause injury to medulla oblongata in
brain - controls blood circulation and
respiration
Desirable these systems continue to
function - help pump blood out of carcass
when blood vessels cut
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE –
Modern method - Stunning
Method of shooting by free bullet - too
dangerous to use in abattoirs
Captive bolt - discarded
Carbon dioxide anesthesia - exact dose of
gas important for specific length of time
does not seem possible with all animals
under all conditions
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE –
Modern method - Stunning
Electrical stunning widely used
increases frequency of ‘blood splash” appearance of small dark red areas in meat
also lowers glycogen reserves of muscle
approximately in 5 % electrically stunned
animals heart failure - animal dead before
incision made
consumers eat carrion and not meat
Objectionable in West, also prohibited by
Holy Scriptures
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE –
Modern method - Stunning
Stunning - outcome of industrial revolution
Initially meant to protect the slaughterer and
other employees
Reality - no relation with mercy on animals
More animals be slaughtered in least time
Industrial revolution - provided mankind with
innumerable benefits
Also inflicted damaging blows on some aspects
of human nutrition
Example - refinement of wheat flour
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
Animal positioning
Islamic method - lay animal on left flank
preferably facing Kibla
Scientific evidence
When laid on left flank, likelihood of more blood
to drain due to body pressure on heart
Laying animal enables it to convulse
 results from contraction of muscles due to
lack of oxygen in brain cells when incision
made in neck
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
Animal positioning - Scientific evidence
During convulsions blood squeezed out of
vessels
Hence more blood drains out
a pre-requisite for meat of superior
eating and keeping quality
Evidence suggests more blood lost from
sheep in horizontal position than those
hung vertically
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
Bleeding techniques
Islam permits use of sharp knife or any
sharp object for bleeding
Incision made in neck with simultaneous
recitation of the name of Allah - Takbir
Takbir has religious significance to
believer
makes submission to Allah
life taken out of animal with His
permission
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
Bleeding techniques
Slaughtering actually done in the name of
Allah
“So eat of (meats) on which God’s name
has been pronounced if ye have faith in
His Signs” (Al Anaam - Vl:118).
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
Bleeding techniques
Slaughtering not in name of any person
or deity in accordance with following
commands:
 “Eat not of meats on which God’s name
has not been pronounced: that would be
impiety. But the evil ones ever inspire
their friends to commit end with you if ye
were to obey them, ye would indeed be
Pagans” (Vl:121).
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
Bleeding techniques - Islamic method
Cut throat transversely without injuring
spinal cord to severe:
carotid arteries
jugular veins
oesophagus and
trachea
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
3. Bleeding techniques Islamic method
Two requirements in slaughter of animals
for meat:
 animals be dispatched without
unnecessary suffering
bleeding be as complete as possible
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
3. Bleeding techniques – Scientific evidence
When both carotid arteries and veins
severed connection between brain and
body retained via spinal cord
Brain sends messages to heart and lungs
Heart pumps blood to parts of body
 drained out from severed blood
vessels in neck
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
3. Bleeding techniques – Scientific evidence
Results of a comparison of study on
different methods of slaughtering:
Maximum blood lost in Kosher method
Jewish method similar to Islamic as
regards physical details
Minimum when chicken simply beheaded
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
3. Bleeding techniques – Scientific evidence
Islamic method ensures maximum blood
drainage from body before completion of
death process
Unconsciousness induced between 3 to
6 seconds
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
Bleeding – Scientific evidence
Blood excellent medium for growth of
microorganisms
Meat retaining more blood than critical level
liable to bacterial spoilage
Blood retention in tissues can cause unpleasant
appearance and discolouration in meat
Keeping and eating qualities of meat depend, in
part, on removal of maximum blood from
carcass
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
Bleeding techniques – Scientific evidence
To produce good carcass animal be bled
effectively
Heart and respiratory system must
function continuously as long as possible
after severance of blood vessels
This attained most thoroughly when heart
and respiratory functions retained by
maintaining medulla oblongata/spinal cord
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SLAUGHTERING PROCEDURE
Bleeding techniques – Scientific evidence
Positioning of animal in Islamic method:
 clearly prevents retraction of carotids
 ensures rapid onset of unconsciousness
and painless death
In Islamic method of slaughtering
maximum blood drained - outranks other
slaughtering techniques
HENCE BETTER QUALITY OF MEAT
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EXTRODUCTION
Current scientific data reveals Islamic
recommendations for slaughtering animals
highly rational
Good physique and health considered basic
requirement for selection of food animals
Pre-slaughter management of animals requires
they should not be fatigued, excited or neurotic
Proper rest, absence of hunger and thirst and
use of sharp knife alleviate pains of death
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