Najasah in Liquidy Food

September 4, 2010

Question

I have one question about najasah getting into food. According to the malakis and the shafi’is, if najasah gets into liquid food (i.e. milk, oil honey) the whole thing becomes najas. What is the hanafi position in regards to this?

This is very relevent in our days since some products have things like vanilla extract (which is 30 % alcohol). So, if they put that into the batter, the whole thing becomes najas according to the malakis and the shafi’is.

Answered by: Mufti Abdurrahman ibn Yusuf

Assalaamu alaykum

In the name of Allah the Inspirer of truth

Najasa in any type of liquid, edible or non-edible, will render the liquid impure if it is not in large quantity, as is the normal size of domestic food packaging nowadays. Hence, in this regard the Hanafi opinion is similar to the other schools.

Likewise, according to the opinion in the Hanafi school that the fatwa has been on until now (i.e. the view of Imam Muhammad) that even small amounts of alcohol, whether from grapes or artificial sources will render the liquid impure if mixed with it. However, some of the scholars are looking at the opinions of the Shaykhayn (Imam Abu Hanifa and Abu Yusuf) in regards to this type of issue where al-khamr al-haqiqi is not used. They say that it may be possible to exercise some flexibility in the case of synthetic alcohol, and it will not be considered impure unless it reaches an intoxicating degree. However, I have not reached a conclusion in this regard as yet. May Allah grant us this.

As you may be aware, the fatwa in the Hanafi school concerning the purity if industrial alcohol used in ointments, sterilizing and perfumes is that it is pure.

And Allah knows best.

Mufti Abdurrahman ibn Yusuf

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Dr. Mufti Abdur-Rahman ibn Yusuf

Dr. Shaykh Abdur-Rahman ibn Yusuf Mangera is a British Muslim scholar educated in both the Islamic and Western traditions. He memorised the Qur’an by heart and graduated from the Darul Uloom seminary Bury, UK, and later earned a specialised licence to issue fatwa (legal responses) at Mazahir ‘Ulum Saharanpur, India. He earned his BA from the University of Johannesburg and completed his MA and PhD in Islamic Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. He holds an honorary fellowship at The Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought, Amman, Jordan. Shaykh Abdur-Rahman has the unique experience of serving as an imam in Muslim communities on both sides of the Atlantic, eight years in Southern California and over five in the great city of London—and his continued work as an international speaker and lecturer enables him to address and offer pertinent advice on current challenges that face Muslims in the West. He is the founder of Whitethread Institute, a post-graduate insititute for Islamic scholars. He is an avid traveller and continues to teach hadith and work on scholarly publications through White Thread Press (www.whitethreadpress.com). Many of his lectures are available on www.zamzamacademy.com and his courses through Rayyan Institute (www.rayyaninstitute.com).