Selling leftover food in a restaurant contrary to regulations
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Fatwa number ( 15433 )
Q: In restaurants, we generally prepare food based on the expected sales volume, and by the grace of Allah, we sell the food without surplus on most days. However, on some days, some of what we prepare remains, and unfortunately,
We are ordered to throw all of it in the trash, and the confusing thing is that not all food spoils at the same rate; in fact, some of it remains unchanged for more than 12 or 24 hours, so what about 11 hours? Among these foods, (chicken and stew) do not change, as I order the workers to keep only (chicken and stew) in the refrigerators for 11 hours. This duration is the difference between closing the shop and starting sales the next day, a period that I believe, with Allah's permission, does not harm such food in summer or winter, especially since we store it in well-cooled refrigerators and freezers. The next day, we sell the (chicken and stew) that we stored at the beginning of the day before anything else. It is known that if a buyer asks about this food and its time, etc., we inform him frankly of the truth and leave it to his choice to buy it or buy something else. The question here is: 1. Is this permissible in the Shari'ah or not? Knowing that we are ordered to throw all the food without exception, and is there any harm in what I do of storing the food as long as its taste has not changed and there is no harm in it as long as it is stored? 2. The other matter regarding the other foods (rice) is that we throw it away at the end of the shift because we believe it is not suitable for sale, as its appearance changes when stored, so we throw it away and close the shop. If you say that throwing edible food in the trash is forbidden, and others are dying of hunger, and why don't you distribute it to the needy in your city, we say: as you know, may Allah preserve you, the shop closing time is late (approximately 12 at night), and at this time we do not find anyone to give it to. Also, knocking on
doors at night at that hour causes us great embarrassment. If you say: store it as you stored the others, we say: I am a person with studies and responsibilities, and if we stored it for more than 15 hours (until the 'Asr time), it would cause us many problems with the municipal authorities. Also, this type is not like the others in how quickly it spoils, as we mentioned earlier; its appearance changes, not its taste, when stored (the rice grains break), so it is not suitable for sale. The question here is: Is there anything upon me, or does sin befall me by throwing food in the trash? Please issue a ruling for us, may Allah reward you with good, and guide us to the proper way that does not lead us to sin, so that our Creator is pleased with us and blesses us in our provision and food.
A: What remains in the restaurant of food and meat that is fit for eating, and the municipality prevents its sale; it is not permissible to sell it, nor is it permissible to waste it as long as it can be utilized. This is done by giving it to the needy as charity, either by delivering it to them directly or through a charitable organization.
Q: In restaurants, we generally prepare food based on the expected sales volume, and by the grace of Allah, we sell the food without surplus on most days. However, on some days, some of what we prepare remains, and unfortunately,
We are ordered to throw all of it in the trash, and the confusing thing is that not all food spoils at the same rate; in fact, some of it remains unchanged for more than 12 or 24 hours, so what about 11 hours? Among these foods, (chicken and stew) do not change, as I order the workers to keep only (chicken and stew) in the refrigerators for 11 hours. This duration is the difference between closing the shop and starting sales the next day, a period that I believe, with Allah's permission, does not harm such food in summer or winter, especially since we store it in well-cooled refrigerators and freezers. The next day, we sell the (chicken and stew) that we stored at the beginning of the day before anything else. It is known that if a buyer asks about this food and its time, etc., we inform him frankly of the truth and leave it to his choice to buy it or buy something else. The question here is: 1. Is this permissible in the Shari'ah or not? Knowing that we are ordered to throw all the food without exception, and is there any harm in what I do of storing the food as long as its taste has not changed and there is no harm in it as long as it is stored? 2. The other matter regarding the other foods (rice) is that we throw it away at the end of the shift because we believe it is not suitable for sale, as its appearance changes when stored, so we throw it away and close the shop. If you say that throwing edible food in the trash is forbidden, and others are dying of hunger, and why don't you distribute it to the needy in your city, we say: as you know, may Allah preserve you, the shop closing time is late (approximately 12 at night), and at this time we do not find anyone to give it to. Also, knocking on
doors at night at that hour causes us great embarrassment. If you say: store it as you stored the others, we say: I am a person with studies and responsibilities, and if we stored it for more than 15 hours (until the 'Asr time), it would cause us many problems with the municipal authorities. Also, this type is not like the others in how quickly it spoils, as we mentioned earlier; its appearance changes, not its taste, when stored (the rice grains break), so it is not suitable for sale. The question here is: Is there anything upon me, or does sin befall me by throwing food in the trash? Please issue a ruling for us, may Allah reward you with good, and guide us to the proper way that does not lead us to sin, so that our Creator is pleased with us and blesses us in our provision and food.
A: What remains in the restaurant of food and meat that is fit for eating, and the municipality prevents its sale; it is not permissible to sell it, nor is it permissible to waste it as long as it can be utilized. This is done by giving it to the needy as charity, either by delivering it to them directly or through a charitable organization.
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.