GEORGE TOWN, Feb 4 — The Penang State Fatwa Committee believes there is no need to rush in issuing a fatwa regarding cultured meat until the source of the stem cells or the growth medium for the meat is clearly known.
Penang Mufti Datuk Seri Wan Salim Wan Mohd Noor said the committee also wanted to first ensure the substances added to its production and their effects on human health.
He believed that in the context of Malaysia, there was still no urgent need to issue a definitive fatwa on the issue of cultured meat for the time being.
“Fatwas in such issues need to be based on several jurisprudential methods.
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“We also need to wait for fatwas or views from authoritative fatwa institutions at the global level on this issue,” he said in a statement today.
Wan Salim made these comments in response to media reports regarding the Fatwa Committee of the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS) finding that cultured meat was generally halal or permissible for Muslims to consume if it met certain conditions.
According to Berita Harian Singapura, the statement issued by MUIS on the fatwa yesterday is in line with the increased global emphasis on sustainable food production, while also aiming to address concerns among the Muslim community about consuming new food products such as cultured meat.
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Cultured meat, according to MUIS, refers to meat produced using cell cultivation techniques, either through tissue culture or stem cells taken from animals.
It serves as an alternative source of meat to conventionally farmed animal meat, and to ensure informed decision-making among Muslims, the MUIS Fatwa Committee outlines three important conditions for cultured meat to be considered halal.
These include that the cells must come from halal animals, any substances used to shape the texture and composition of cultured meat must be halal, and the product must be non-toxic and clean. — Bernama
