Islamic scholar in UK offended by turkey bacon

"It could well lead towards eating the real thing."

The question is, why is this a story on the BBC at all? If Rod Adlington wants to produce turkey bacon, why should it be a controversy for anyone? The unspoken subtext of this article seems to be that Adlington should stop producing this product if Naveed Ashrafi's opinion wins out in the Islamic community. So what if the non-Muslim "pork-free market" and "the slimming market" wants turkey bacon? Apparently if Muslims don't want it, no one else can or should have it either. That Islamic supremacist conclusion is the only justification for this story; otherwise neither the BBC nor anyone else would care what Rod Adlington raises on his farm.

"Coventry farmer defends bacon substitute for Muslims," by Philip Churm for the BBC, June 18

A Coventry farmer has insisted he is reacting to demand from traders in trying to give Muslims a taste of pork by producing bacon-style rashers from halal-slaughtered turkeys.

Rod Adlington's attempts to imitate the meat, which Muslims cannot eat because of their religion, has seen a Muslim scholar voice concerns that it could lead to people eating real bacon from pork.

The turkey farmer told BBC Asian Network he was reacting to requests from convenience stores he supplies to and said they wanted a "really good turkey bacon".

"We kept being asked for it and so we decided to produce it," he added.

"There's a want for the product for the halal market, for the pork-free market and for the slimming market."...

Maulana Naveed Ashrafi, a Muslim scholar from Blackburn, said he was concerned as to where eating the turkey bacon rashers could lead to for other Muslims.

"It can ultimately lead to people who only eat halal food ending up eating the real bacon - bacon from pork," he said.

"The Islamic opinion on this subject would be to avoid eating such foods which have a remote resemblance (to pork) because it could well lead towards eating the real thing."

However, Dr Haifaa Jawed lectures in Islamic Studies at the University of Birmingham, said she did not believe there was a problem in eating bacon-style turkey rashers....

"If there is no bacon in that form of food or, if the meat is Islamically slaughtered, it should be ok."