The culinary world was shocked when Impossible Foods, the maker of the meatless meat products, announced that it was launching a range of pork products.

Impossible Foods said customers were requesting for plant-based pork, so it rolled out pork patties and pork sausages.

As with all Impossible Foods products, Impossible Pork is made from soy, but mimics the texture and taste of ground meat.

But if it looks like pork and smells like pork, even though it's not made of pork -- can it be eaten by people who don't usually eat pork?

To find out, Mothership.sg asked the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS) if an Impossible Pork product would be considered halal for Muslims to consume.

New foods have emerged

In response, MUIS replied that they had received several queries asking the same thing.

It said: "Islam has a clear set of principles and laws on the consumption of food and beverages for Muslims. Food such as unslaughtered meat, pork and their derivatives, and drinks that contain alcohol are prohibited."

However, MUIS acknowledged that with rapid advancements in food science, new and more complex foods have emerged.

MUIS stated:

"To ascertain if such products can be consumed by Muslims, two things need to be considered: first is whether all its ingredients are permitted under Muslim law; and second whether there are undesirable social consequences arising from the consumption of such foods."

And the answer?

"In this case, it may cause confusion for the Muslim public from the use of the name of a clearly prohibited food item under Muslim law."

MUIS added that it advises the Muslim community not to consume such food until the above considerations have been looked into in a thorough and holistic manner.

So there you have it.

The short answer is: Singapore Muslims are advised to refrain from eating Impossible Pork.

Impossible Foods says its products are halal and kosher

However, according to the Impossible Foods website, its products are certified halal and kosher.

According to the company, The Impossible Burger is halal certified by the Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America (IFANCA).

But do also note that there are multiple councils in the U.S. and around the world that offer certification with their own justifications, and they often times make rulings that are contrary to one another.

Top image via Impossible Foods