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Halal Food: A History
Food trucks announcing "halal" proliferate in many urban areas but how many non-Muslims know what this means, other than cheap lunch? Here Middle Eastern historians Febe Armanios and Bogac Ergene provide an accessible introduction to halal (permissible) food in the Islamic tradition, exploring what halal food means to Muslims and how its legal and cultural interpretations have changed in different geographies up to the present day.
Historically, Muslims used food to define their identities in relation to co-believers and non-Muslims. Food taboos are rooted in the Quran and prophetic customs, as well as writings from various periods and geographical settings. As in Judaism and among certain Christian sects, Islamic food traditions make distinctions between clean and impure, and dietary choices and food preparation reflect how believers think about broader issues. Traditionally, most halal interpretations focused on animal slaughter and the consumption of intoxicants. Muslims today, however, must also contend with an array of manufactured food products--yogurts, chocolates, cheeses, candies, and sodas--filled with unknown additives and fillers. To help consumers navigate the new halal marketplace, certifying agencies, government and non-government bodies, and global businesses vie to meet increased demands for food piety. At the same time, blogs, cookbooks, restaurants, and social media apps have proliferated, while animal rights and eco-conscious activists seek to recover halal's more wholesome and ethical inclinations.
Covering practices from the Middle East and North Africa to South Asia, Europe, and North America, this timely book is for anyone curious about the history of halal food and its place in the modern world.
Historically, Muslims used food to define their identities in relation to co-believers and non-Muslims. Food taboos are rooted in the Quran and prophetic customs, as well as writings from various periods and geographical settings. As in Judaism and among certain Christian sects, Islamic food traditions make distinctions between clean and impure, and dietary choices and food preparation reflect how believers think about broader issues. Traditionally, most halal interpretations focused on animal slaughter and the consumption of intoxicants. Muslims today, however, must also contend with an array of manufactured food products--yogurts, chocolates, cheeses, candies, and sodas--filled with unknown additives and fillers. To help consumers navigate the new halal marketplace, certifying agencies, government and non-government bodies, and global businesses vie to meet increased demands for food piety. At the same time, blogs, cookbooks, restaurants, and social media apps have proliferated, while animal rights and eco-conscious activists seek to recover halal's more wholesome and ethical inclinations.
Covering practices from the Middle East and North Africa to South Asia, Europe, and North America, this timely book is for anyone curious about the history of halal food and its place in the modern world.
400 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2018
7 people are currently reading
124 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
November 25, 2019
I found this on Audible a while back and grabbed it because I wanted to know more about Halal food, and by extension, Islam. If you do a google search for the term "Halal" this definition is the first result:
Now that I've read this book, it's shameful how inadequate that is. There is so much more to Halal than just meat - though the respectful treatment of livestock, the method of slaughtering, and preparation of meat is one of the key tenets.
I learned quite a lot about Halal (though not whether it needed to be capitalized, since I listened to the audio, so I'll continue to do so) - why it is important to Muslims, how it fits into Islamic faith and laws (yes, I mean Sharia), variations of interpretations and understanding of what is and is not Halal, and why, including how different countries interpret Halal. I learned about what it means to cook and eat Halal, and how the dietary restrictions impact lives and travel and education, and even assimilation into other cultures and countries. Halal isn't a TYPE of food, it's a method of preparation with specific requirements... so any kind of food can be Halal. American, Italian, French, Indian, Japanese, Chinese, Latin... whatever. How it's prepared and what's in it make it Halal, and offering Halal options aids in immigration assimilation more than fighting it, honestly.
I was surprised to learn that it's becoming more and more popular among non-Muslims as well, as there has been a shift toward healthy and humane food choices. And by humane, I mean things like free-range chicken and eggs, grass fed beef, etc. Not animals raised in cages in their own waste. There is a debate regarding whether Halal slaughter is humane, since generally the method is for the animal to be healthy and conscious when having its throat cut, rather than stunning the animal prior to death. But this falls within the interpretation of the text, as the animal isn't DEAD after stunning, which is the requirement for Halal. Anyway, I'm getting into the weeds. My point with this section was how Halal is growing in the areas of industry and commerce. Food companies are offering more Halal options, because more consumers are demanding it.
Anyway, the CONTENT of this book was really interesting and informative, and I enjoyed it a lot. I learned a lot from it. But the structure and dryness of the text made it a bit hard to get through, even on audio. Maybe especially on audio.
It was structured by topic, with each chapter covering something like the history of Halal food in the Koran, or international laws and certification of Halal food, slaughtering requirements and debates for certification and how it differs by country, or non-Muslim food manufacturers and providers getting into the Halal industry, etc. Which was, I think, a good way to break it down, because it helped it not feel so overwhelming... but I also think that it caused it to feel repetitive at times, since there is a LOT of overlap. For instance, we covered Halal slaughter in that chapter, but then in the chapter dedicated to non-Muslim food companies getting into Halal foods, it obviously has to come up again, because the method of livestock care during life, the method of slaughter, the handling of the meat, etc is all something that matters in Halal foods, but that the non-Muslim company would not necessarily be prepared for or able to certify without huge changes to their business. Just an example.
I will say that I really did like the reader for this, even though he was English. He did a great job, and (I assume) pronounced all of the Arabic well (I can't vouch for authentic or correct pronunciation, but it sounded legit to me).
Overall, I think that this was interesting and informative, and now I want to read something similar for Kosher food. :D
ha·lal
/həˈläl,ˈhalal/
adjective
denoting or relating to meat prepared as prescribed by Muslim law
Now that I've read this book, it's shameful how inadequate that is. There is so much more to Halal than just meat - though the respectful treatment of livestock, the method of slaughtering, and preparation of meat is one of the key tenets.
I learned quite a lot about Halal (though not whether it needed to be capitalized, since I listened to the audio, so I'll continue to do so) - why it is important to Muslims, how it fits into Islamic faith and laws (yes, I mean Sharia), variations of interpretations and understanding of what is and is not Halal, and why, including how different countries interpret Halal. I learned about what it means to cook and eat Halal, and how the dietary restrictions impact lives and travel and education, and even assimilation into other cultures and countries. Halal isn't a TYPE of food, it's a method of preparation with specific requirements... so any kind of food can be Halal. American, Italian, French, Indian, Japanese, Chinese, Latin... whatever. How it's prepared and what's in it make it Halal, and offering Halal options aids in immigration assimilation more than fighting it, honestly.
I was surprised to learn that it's becoming more and more popular among non-Muslims as well, as there has been a shift toward healthy and humane food choices. And by humane, I mean things like free-range chicken and eggs, grass fed beef, etc. Not animals raised in cages in their own waste. There is a debate regarding whether Halal slaughter is humane, since generally the method is for the animal to be healthy and conscious when having its throat cut, rather than stunning the animal prior to death. But this falls within the interpretation of the text, as the animal isn't DEAD after stunning, which is the requirement for Halal. Anyway, I'm getting into the weeds. My point with this section was how Halal is growing in the areas of industry and commerce. Food companies are offering more Halal options, because more consumers are demanding it.
Anyway, the CONTENT of this book was really interesting and informative, and I enjoyed it a lot. I learned a lot from it. But the structure and dryness of the text made it a bit hard to get through, even on audio. Maybe especially on audio.
It was structured by topic, with each chapter covering something like the history of Halal food in the Koran, or international laws and certification of Halal food, slaughtering requirements and debates for certification and how it differs by country, or non-Muslim food manufacturers and providers getting into the Halal industry, etc. Which was, I think, a good way to break it down, because it helped it not feel so overwhelming... but I also think that it caused it to feel repetitive at times, since there is a LOT of overlap. For instance, we covered Halal slaughter in that chapter, but then in the chapter dedicated to non-Muslim food companies getting into Halal foods, it obviously has to come up again, because the method of livestock care during life, the method of slaughter, the handling of the meat, etc is all something that matters in Halal foods, but that the non-Muslim company would not necessarily be prepared for or able to certify without huge changes to their business. Just an example.
I will say that I really did like the reader for this, even though he was English. He did a great job, and (I assume) pronounced all of the Arabic well (I can't vouch for authentic or correct pronunciation, but it sounded legit to me).
Overall, I think that this was interesting and informative, and now I want to read something similar for Kosher food. :D
August 13, 2021
I love this book I think this book should be in all the libraries with food non-fiction section.
This book is detail analysis of HALAL FOOD, MEAT, and CONSUMPTION.
This book talks about the history and present HALAL food.
There is almost 100 pages worth of bibliography that the author explore to explain the point or topic. There is a chapter on Commercial Cooperation like IFANCA or SMIIC and how they consider their meat pure and halal and according to sharia.
So over all I enjoy reading this book.
This book is detail analysis of HALAL FOOD, MEAT, and CONSUMPTION.
This book talks about the history and present HALAL food.
There is almost 100 pages worth of bibliography that the author explore to explain the point or topic. There is a chapter on Commercial Cooperation like IFANCA or SMIIC and how they consider their meat pure and halal and according to sharia.
So over all I enjoy reading this book.
November 18, 2021
This is a 10 hour audio book and I love the entire thing! It's very thoroughly researched and nicely presented. As someone who's constantly worrying about ingredients and at minimum will only eat hand-slaughtered meat, this was brilliant. It was so nice to hear other opinions on halal food and how different countries (and regulation committees) work. I wouldn't even know where to look or who to ask, to learn about some of information presented.
I'd definitely recommend others listen to this book, both Muslim (Shia and Sunni - this covers both) and non-Muslim.
I'd definitely recommend others listen to this book, both Muslim (Shia and Sunni - this covers both) and non-Muslim.
March 10, 2019
I was close friends with Muslims in my college and post-college friends and learned first hand about what is "halal" food in our school's cafeterias and eateries. What was halal, what wasn't, what could be questionable if the ingredients weren't clear, what they could eat as alternatives, the religious reasons for why something was or wasn't. It was never a big deal as they were used to maneuvering this but all the same it was interesting because they didn't always agree with each other what was and wasn't halal and the lines of thinking led to some fascinating discussions.
This book takes a look at the history of halal food and the criteria. The foods, the preparation involved, the standards, businesses, etc. It was informative and interesting and I definitely learned a lot more that I never even thought to ask with my friends. There are also a few recipes and pictures of various related topics: food, restaurants, etc.
But at the same time it was also a pretty dry read. I had hoped this was a more accessible, layman type book but I found it tough to get through. The information was, as mentioned, quite interesting but I would imagine that someone who has no knowledge might find this tough to muddle though.
I can see this book as a title that shows up in a class on the history/examination of food, a class on Islam and Muslims, etc. This certainly isn't the most academic text I've read, but I'd recommend this more of a library borrow unless you need it as a reference.
This book takes a look at the history of halal food and the criteria. The foods, the preparation involved, the standards, businesses, etc. It was informative and interesting and I definitely learned a lot more that I never even thought to ask with my friends. There are also a few recipes and pictures of various related topics: food, restaurants, etc.
But at the same time it was also a pretty dry read. I had hoped this was a more accessible, layman type book but I found it tough to get through. The information was, as mentioned, quite interesting but I would imagine that someone who has no knowledge might find this tough to muddle though.
I can see this book as a title that shows up in a class on the history/examination of food, a class on Islam and Muslims, etc. This certainly isn't the most academic text I've read, but I'd recommend this more of a library borrow unless you need it as a reference.
November 12, 2018
Learned a lot, enjoyed meeting the authors!
May 20, 2020
Very informative and well researched. I learned a lot.
April 22, 2024
Great audiobook
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews