I’m trying to figure out how to approach eating meat as a Muslim in a Western country.
The Qur’an forbids meat dedicated to other than God, but verses like 5:5 seem to allow food from People of the Book. In reality though, meat production here is industrial, non-religious, and pretty much anonymous—so there’s no way to know anything about intention.
One concern I have: even if it’s unlikely, I can’t rule out that someone involved in slaughter could dedicate it to something other than God. With halal butchers, at least there’s a claim that this isn’t the case. With supermarket meat, there’s zero assurance.
At the same time, my main concern isn’t even convenience—I’m more worried about whether the slaughter method could involve unnecessary animal suffering, and whether that would matter from a Qur’anic perspective.
I don’t mind sticking to halal meat. The only downside is limited options when eating out.
So I’m stuck between not wanting to justify eating anything just for convenience, and not wanting to restrict myself unnecessarily based on assumptions.
Which Qur’anic verses are actually relevant here, and how should they be understood in the broader context—especially for modern, industrial meat production?