LAHORE - The current volume of the total cosmetics industry in the world is about $335 billion but share of halal cosmetics is mere $13 billion (4 per cent) in spite of 1.6 billion Muslim population, which is 26 per cent of the whole world population. Experts said that the awareness regarding use of halal cosmetics can enhance consumption of halal makeup products, as more than 20 per cent market potential has not been catered so far.
In view of lack of awareness to understand difference between Halal and non-halal cosmetics, the Halal Research Council has launched a specialized department for in depth research in Soaps, Cosmetics, Dyeing and Paint Chemical industries for the awareness of the consumers of the Muslim world.
Talking to The Nation, HRC Chairman Zubair Mughal said that about 6 billion people of the world use soap daily and this number is prominently increasing day by day. He said that relation between soap and human is as old as the history of culture. Soap has always been the part of civilized society in different shapes either in the shape of Soil collection or mixture of tree leaves and vegetables or mixture of ash and oils while, presently, it comes up with the unique blend of various chemical components, as it is known as liquid soap, beauty soap, toilet soaps and antibacterial soaps etc which is the dire need of each house.
He said that current chemical components and scientific developments have raised different questions about the Halal authenticity of soap and have evidently proved the involvement of non-halal ingredients i.e. Tallow extracted from the fat of swine, chemical from the haram animals’ flow Satiric Acid which is obtained from Lards and all this mixture and blending have distinguished between the division of halal and haram. While in Islam the matter of Halal and Haram is not only confined to foods rather it is also applied on services (Islamic Banking, Islamic mode of businesses and Islamic Finance etc), clothes and tangible items such as Cosmetics, Soap and Paint etc. When man enters in the category of impurity by touching some haram animals and it becomes mandatory to have shower (Ghusal), then now would it be justified to take bath while using the soaps which is produced with chemicals from the ingredients obtained from same animals? Will his worship be accepted after using that soap? Hence, it is needed that we should differentiate between Halal and Haram in tangible (consumable) items along with food and services.
“We buy and adopt with joy the leather made imported items such as shoes and hand bags imported from Italy and other countries but do we ever think of the ingredients used in those products and the skin of the animal which was used in those products? Whether the Halal animals are utilized in those countries? If “No” then which animal’s skin was used as leather? Which chemicals are used in dying processing of towel that we use to clean the face. Is it obtained from swine’s Fat? Which chemicals are used in our paint industry etc? These are the matters of deep concentration to avoid haram a part of our life.”