For those who fast and care about the food they consume whether they are Muslim or not.

1. Ghazal Omid
1701 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Suite 300 PMB# 332
Washington DC, 20006
United States
King Abdullah Bin ‘Abdul ‘Aziz Al-Saud, the Custodian of the Two Holy Shrines
Office of His Majesty The King Royal Court
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Tel/Fax: +966 1 488 2222
You’re Majesty, King Abdullah Bin ‘Abdul ‘Aziz Al-Saud,
As they say in English, “To whom much is given, much is expected.” While I know about your efforts to
build Mosques and educate Muslims around the world about the word of God, I am here with an
URGENT, disturbing concern regarding food we import from Europe and US into Muslim nations,
particularly Saudi Arabia.
I have lived in the United States and Canada for the past 17 years. As an educated, devout Muslim, I
read every label to be aware of what I eat. However, until recently I did not know some of the particles in
our food make it un-clean for Muslim’s consumption.
I frequently talk to people in mosques and shop in Hallal stores. Not one raised the alarm. I didn’t know
most of our food in the US or Europe contains Pork and Alcohol.
My epiphany came a few weeks ago while watching a local program about food in the US called Living
Beyond Organic. The host, Jordan Rubin, is a Christian who believes in the Old Testament. Those who
believe in the Old Testament presumably do not eat pork. In elaborating as what sort of food is good for
our bodies; he mentioned we should avoid cheese in our pizza, burgers and salads, except cheese such
as Feta.
Then, he explained that the cheese people love contains enzymes made from the intestines of PORK. I
rushed to the internet and confirmed that he was he was right. Nearly all cheese on the market contains
the enzyme called Rennet. Unfortunately, we import these ingredients into Muslim countries, including
Saudi, without asking questions. Everyone who has used these products, from you, the King, to every
individual in your country, regardless of status, may have consumed this pork enzyme.

2. The host further explained about soft drinks ant that the soft drink Pepsi contains vanilla which is derived
from Alcohol; not enough to get anyone drunk but enough to make it un-clean for Muslim consumption.
Pepsi contains vanilla, which contains approximately 0.01 % alcohol, for taste.
Had I not been to Mecca, I would have thought, the Holy City of Mecca had a special food police that
looks into every type of food before importing it into Saudi. Unfortunately, at least not to my knowledge,
that is not so. I have seen families; mums, dads and children buying ice-cream and Pepsi on hot days.
In fact, Pepsi because of its orange coloring is the favorite drink of children in most of the Middle East.
Even more heart breaking, I have seen families enjoying a break sitting in the shade of the Ka’ba drinking
their Pepsi.
While researching, I found many products we frequently use contain enzymes extracted from PORK.
Many products in our daily diets list enzymes right on the packaging without mentioning from what sort of
animal the enzyme was extracted. If the enzyme is from a non-Islamic slaughtered cow, it is not Hallal for
Muslims although many sites claim otherwise. That is of course, if we are lucky and the enzyme wasn’t
from a pig. This is not an isolated case but a world wide issue. I have attached links for your office and
advisors to investigate. There are hundreds more on the internet.
Here is a short list of products we can find in many items we use daily. While going through hundreds of
sites, including the sites for Jews, I found they all said pork is taboo, or Harram but many Muslims don’t
know the meaning of some of the descriptions used on the packaging. They may say pork but in a
commercial language. Since the native consumer can’t find pork on the packaging, he finds no reason
to abandon the product, particularly if the price is low!
Vanilla: Contains minute amount of alcohol. Is used in Ice cream, cake, sweets, candy, pastry and the list
goes on…
“Pepsin: A substance obtained from the stomachs of hogs and calves and used as a digestive aid.
Commercial pepsin is extracted from the glandular layer of hog stomachs. It is a component of rennet ,
used to curdle milk during the manufacture of cheese. Pepsin is used for a variety of applications in
food manufacturing: to modify and provide whipping qualities of soy protein and gelatin, to modify
vegetable proteins for use in non-dairy snack items, to make precooked cereals into instant hot cereals
and to prepare animal and vegetable protein hydrolysates for use in flavoring foods and beverages. It is
used in the leather industry to remove hair and residual tissue from hides and in the recovery of silver
from discarded photographic films by digesting the gelatin layer that holds the silver. Pepsin was
historically an additive of chewing gum. It also gave name to Pepsi-Cola, originally formulated with
pepsin and cola nuts.”
Vitamin: many of the vitamin supplements brands contain pepsin.
Rennin (Rennet): A protein enzyme from pigs, used in cheese.
Gelatin (Jell-O Gelatin): Usually of animal origin, mostly from pigs, can have variety of usage in cooking
and pastry.
Collagen: highly advertised for women’s skin creams are also extracted from pig skin.
Glycerin: used in all brands of makeup, soap, conditioners, creams and shampoo. Dove is one of the
few brands that attempts to correctly glycerin products.
Answer.com a sub link of Wikipedia

3. “…glycerol is created by processing a variety of fats from both animals and vegetables and not from
pigs alone.”
Another controversial product geared mostly to Middle East market is Colgate toothpaste. Some believe
they use enzymes extracted from intestines of pork. Others argue that is not the case. But the best
people who can answer the question is the Colgate company which does not release anything.
I have also been doing research on products from China, particularly leather goods imported from China.
Dog meat and pig are two major food sources in China. For over a billion people that is a lot of slaughter.
Every time we buy something made in China, there is a good chance we are wearing leather from a dog
or pig. When I lived in Canada, I bought two sofas imported from China. Later I discovered they were pig
leather. To say I was disgusted is a very polite way of telling you how I felt.
Besides my concerns regarding our food ingredient, my other major worry is that there is no unity
between Muslims to decide what is Hallal and what is Harram in organized, researched and educated
studies. People seem to pick and chose Harram and Hallal as they go along with their lives. Even though
we know Islam is strict about Harram and Hallal, profit seems to find away to turn Harram into Hallal. With
all the money and funding the Muslim world spends on trying to spread the world of Allah, we don’t even
have a proper center in every mosque to send out emails to Muslims around the world cautioning them
about these types of basic issues which is a must know.
“New Area Muslims,” those who mostly travel to or live in US or Europe seem to have it both ways!
During my travels I have observed Arab ladies and gentleman from delis’ of New York all the way to food
courts of Vancouver, Canada. They go, fully covered from head to toe, into a store in which Muslims can
only buy coffee, and nothing else on the menu, and sit down for a full meal; enjoying a variety of food,
unconcerned that the owner is not a Muslim and this isn’t a Hallal restaurant…
Many Muslims seem to think that just by saying, “In the name of God”, in Arabic, Harram food magically
turns into Hallal food. Some even joke “If you say the name of God over a food that contains pork or
alcohol it becomes Hallal. These are the type of Muslims that pray five times a day, fast for a month,
cover from head to toe and yet are highly un-educated about the basic issues of Islam that consuming
Harram food is not only a sin but also insults the very prophet we love so much.
Many of the airlines flying from Muslim countries of the Middle East serve un-clean food and alcohol on
board. They don’t want to lose customers.
Friends in the US tell me they have been in meetings with Arab men wearing long dresses, referring to
the Arabic white garb, and seeing those individuals highly intoxicated.
If I had not seen Arab men drinking alcohol in hotels in UAE and airport bars and lounges, I would have
thought they are spreading rumors about Muslims. An acquaintance of mine from Serbia told me during
the last Ramadan, “Bars are closed only during the Ramadan, we are European Muslims.” I asked what
he meant by being “European Muslims.” He replied “We don’t drink only during Ramadan but the rest of
the year we do.” He also told me, people pray but they also drink!
The men of Muslim and Arab cultures leave a horrible impression of what Islam is. I am not sure if they
know they cannot pray for 40 days after consuming even the smallest amount of alcoholic beverages.
While branding Islam toward peaceful and modern ways is a great idea, changing its foundation from not
drinking and eating pork to one of “a casual Muslim” with freedom to do whatever he wants will destroy
this pure religion.
Prophet Mohamed (PBH) didn’t call Islam pure because it was easy to follow. We have to obey Allah at
all times and face temptations with full force.

4. I assure you, the examples of these practices are not limited to Sunni Muslims. When it comes to food,
both Shi’a and Sunni do it exactly the same. I found caviar listed on a Shi’a Muslim sites as Hallal. Caviar
is obtained from estrogen fish, which have adapted and survived for millions of years and have no visible
scales. Neither does shark which is in demand in some Muslim nations, including Iran. The Iranian
government declared estrogen fish and shark Hallal.
My argument is: it may have scales that one can see under a microscope but that is not what prophet told
us. We have to see it with naked eyes before we agree it is edible for us. Not every household in Muslim
countries has a microscope handy; therefore, this excuse does not make caviar from estrogen fish Hallal,
despite being one of the top delicacies of the world.
However, if someone is referring to fish eggs as caviar, that is just a figure of speech. The only real caviar
is the one that is not Hallal for Muslims.
As a Muslim duty, I wrote to the site owner and will also write to Grand Ayatollah Sistani, who issued the
Fatwa. I seriously doubt he has ever seen the fish for himself but I have.
From my studies of Islam, I have learned if one makes a personal sin that is different in the eyes of God
than when the entire nation makes the same mistake following the misguidance of those who are
supposed to teach us right from wrong. I am the first to admit I am not a perfect Muslim but I am not
leading anyone. When it comes to right from wrong, I have always tried to do the right thing and tell the
truth even when it is unpopular, because it is simply my Muslim duty.
I can say that in the past 17 years of my stay in US and Canada, I have not once had alcohol or pork but,
unfortunately, I may have had particles in my food without my knowledge.
Your Majesty, no one is responsible for someone else’s actions, sins or guilt and I am not here to tell you
what to do about the entire world’s problems but I believe we are responsible to do something. No one in
the Muslim world has as much power as you and your country. Not only that, you also hold the key to the
holiest sites of Islam. That is a giant responsibility. I wish you to be able to continue always but that also
places you in a tough position about Islam. If you or your country allows a product that, even on
minuscule level, is not Hallal that bears a responsibility for you and everyone in the board of government
of your country under your leadership.
I believe you have the courage, the shoulders and the power to tell companies from US, Europe and
China, to properly label every ingredient in their products intended for Muslim use. There are 1.25 billion
of us and we can stand tall and make our demands. Food is a very basic right of every human being. It is
one area that lack of creates uncertainty, even wars. We don’t have to buy products that are not clean
and we don’t have to consume anything that has alcohol or pork even on microscopic levels. But in order
to demand our rights there must be united efforts. And no one can initiate this effort except YOU.
As a devout Muslim and citizen of this world I have done my duty to raise the alarm. I hope I see a grand
effort to correct this problem that exists because of the greed of a few companies and loopholes of our
Muslim cultures.
After your office brings this letter to your Majesty’s attention, I intend to send it, to every Muslim leader in
the world. Thank you for reading and may Allah Bless you always to do the right thing.
Yours Sincerely,
Ghazal Omid

5. Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pepsin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rennet
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Does_glycerin_come_from_pigs#ixzz21XCnFwYz
http://www.thechurchesofgod.com/CLEAN%20FOODS.htm
http://www.muslimconsumergroup.com/alerts.html
http://www.muslimconsumergroup.com/question_answer.php?cat=1&panna=836
http://www.muslimconsumergroup.com/cosmetic.html
http://www.soundvision.com/Info/halalhealthy/ingridient.asp
http://trylivingorganic.com/2011/10/05/living-beyond-organic-television-show-with-jordan-
rubin/
http://webecoist.momtastic.com/2009/05/08/10-weird-and-gross-ingredients-in-
processed-food/
http://www.drugs.com/cdi/insulin-zinc-pork-suspension.html#HYguLopl7gsmr4fm.30
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Does_Pepsi_have_alcohol_ingredients
http://trylivingorganic.com/category/organic-living/