In recent years, a diverse array of ‘physical economies’ have emerged which utilise some form of Material Flow Analysis (MFA) to quantify the pattern of flows of material and energy into the economy. The reduction of the ‘metabolism’of the economy has become one of the areas of recent environmental and economic research, focusing on ways of achieving global sustainable development. In theory, the reduction of the human socio-economic metabolism, and appropriate changes in technology and consumption, are consistent with the Islamic economic system. Hence, MFA is considered a valuable tool for encouraging and implementing sustainability approaches, which helps realise type of benefits proffered by the vision of Islamic economics. This paper aims to discuss the links between a potential application of MFA and the central themes of the Islamic economic system.