Biotechnology is an extension of plant and animal breeding and genetics, which
have been practiced for decades, and, in some cases, for centuries. One example
of animal breeding dates back to prehistoric times when a donkey and a mare were
crossbred to produce a mule. The meat of a donkey is not accepted as halal food,
and therefore neither is the meat of a mule. Plants have always been bred with
closely related plants and animals with closely related animals. Recently, genes were
identified and scientists also learned how to take a gene from one species and move
it to a more distant species. Currently, genes from fish or insects or pigs can be
introduced into plant species without affecting the appearance or taste, but making
the plants better resistant to diseases or nutritionally better compared with the
conventional products available. This modern technology was not available at the
inception of Islam. Muslim scholars are striving to come to an acceptable decision
on some of the issues facing us today. At the inception of Islam, almost fourteen
centuries ago, Islamic dietary laws were the only regulations for the safety and
wholesomeness of food products, because there were no government food safety
regulations. Currently, food safety is the responsibility of the government agencies