Fatwa..Permissibility of eating meals offered in university dorms

Egypt's Dar al-Iftaa answers readers' questions in various fatwas. We at See publish these fatwas. The question says:

I am travelling to study in the US and will be staying in the university dorms. They provide a meal plan to the students with a weekly menu. I will not be able to know the components or the ingredients of each dish offered, so I might eat something by mistake that is not halal. Is it permissible to eat chicken?

Answer

The general principle related to eating the slaughtered animals of the people of divine scriptures is permissibility. God Almighty says in the Quran, “This day [all] good foods have been made lawful, and the food of those who were given the Scripture is lawful for you and your food is lawful for them” (Quran 5: 5).

It is permissible to eat from the food of the people of the Book and it is permissible for you to eat the chicken they offer without ascertaining the means of its slaughter as these animals are either slaughtered mechanically or manually by either a Muslim or by a person from the people of the Book.

When it comes to meat, the same ruling applies except that you just need to make sure it is not pork that is prohibited. It is lawful for you to eat any kind of meat except for port without exhausting yourself with further investigation and scrutiny.

And God Almighty knows best.