Guides
Halal guides
What the numbers on a label actually mean, which ones depend on the source, and how to tell when the packaging simply does not say.
Translating an ingredient list: reading a foreign-language label
The E number is the same across the whole EU and needs no translation. The rest does, and that is where the false friends sit: porcini is not pork, porcine is.
Are fermented foods halal? Four fermentations, four answers
Fermented does not mean alcoholic. Sauerkraut, yoghurt, tempeh, miso and natto are halal. With soy sauce what counts is whether the pack names alcohol, and with cured sausage it is the meat and not the ripening.
Are preservatives halal? The E200 to E299 block and the three exceptions
The E200 to E299 block is the additive group with the fewest open questions: almost everything in it is synthetic or mineral. The three places where preservation does raise a halal question carry no number from this block.
Halal certification in Germany: who is actually checking?
Germany has no state halal seal, and the term is not protected under food law. Certification is private. How to tell whether a real check sits behind a mark.
Are sugar alcohols halal? Sorbitol, xylitol and the word alcohol
Sorbitol, xylitol, maltitol, erythritol and isomalt are called sugar alcohols, but they are not drinking alcohol and they do not intoxicate. They are halal. Only lactitol (E966) has an origin question one step behind it.
Is cheese halal? It all hangs on the rennet
Milk, salt and cultures are unproblematic. The cheese question is the rennet question: animal rennet comes from a calf's stomach, microbial rennet does not. And a vegetarian mark answers it.
Kosher and halal: where they agree and where they do not
Kosher and halal overlap a great deal, above all on pork. They part company on alcohol, on slaughter and on gelatine. What a kosher mark tells you and what it does not.
Is vitamin D3 halal? Wool, fish and the carrier
Vitamin D3 comes mostly from the wool grease of shorn sheep, less often from fish. Neither is a problem. The open question is the carrier, which is often gelatine.
Alcohol in food: what is halal and what is not
Wine and liqueur as an ingredient are not halal. Vinegar is. Alcohol-free beer is doubtful, alcohol-free wine is not halal. And malt beer, Bourbon vanilla and tartaric acid are not alcohol at all.
Are children's snacks halal? The ingredients that decide it
Gummy sweets, chocolate beans, cheese snacks: with children's snacks five ingredients decide it. Gelatine, E120, shellac, emulsifiers and rennet. Which are doubtful and which are clear cut.
Is E476 halal? The chocolate emulsifier and the glycerol question
E476 (PGPR) has two halves: castor oil, which is always plant, and glycerol, which can be plant, animal or synthetic. The EU specification does not prescribe the origin, so E476 is mushbooh when in doubt.
Is E412 (guar gum) halal? The bean behind the thickener
Guar gum (E412) is the ground endosperm of the guar bean, so pure plant. The usual production uses no solvent at all, which is why E412 is halal. What the alcohol, the peroxide and the protein content actually mean.
Is E407 (carrageenan) halal? Red seaweed and the processing
Carrageenan is extracted from red seaweed and is therefore plant based, so E407 counts as halal. What sets E407a apart, why isopropanol is not an alcohol question, and what to watch on the product anyway.
E-numbers list: halal, haram or mushbooh?
An E-numbers list to look things up: which additives are halal or mushbooh, from E120 through E471 to gelatine. Honest, with sources.
Which E-numbers are haram? The additives that matter
Only a few are a problem regardless of source. Most E numbers are mushbooh when in doubt, and here is which ones those are and why.
Is it halal? How to read an ingredient list properly
A practical guide to spotting hidden animal and alcohol based ingredients, reading negation claims correctly, and knowing when something is genuinely doubtful.
Is E120 halal? Carmine, cochineal and the red colouring
E120 (carmine/cochineal) is a red colouring made from scale insects. Why the majority avoids it, why the certifiers disagree, and how to spot it on an ingredient list.
Is E322 (lecithin) halal? Soy, sunflower and egg
Lecithin is nearly always soya or sunflower and unproblematic. What egg lecithin means, and why vegan is not the same as halal here.
Is E435 (Polysorbate 60) halal? Where the fatty acid comes from
E435/Polysorbate 60 is made from sorbitol and a fatty acid, and that fatty acid can be plant or animal derived. Without evidence it is mushbooh, just like E471.
Is E442 halal? The plant-based emulsifier in chocolate
E442 (Emulgator YN) is made from glycerol, a fatty acid that in practice is rapeseed oil, phosphoric acid and ammonia. Usually halal, low concern, found almost only in chocolate.
Is flavouring (aroma) halal? Alcohol carriers and animal origin
Most flavourings are unproblematic, but carrier alcohol and animal origin are rarely on the pack. What Tayyib flags, and what it does not.
Is beef gelatine halal? Why the slaughter decides, not the animal
Cattle are a permitted animal, so unlike pork gelatine the animal is not the problem, the slaughter is. Beef gelatine is halal only if islamically slaughtered or certified.
What is mushbooh? The doubtful zone between halal and haram
Mushbooh means doubtful: the ingredient may well be permitted, but the label does not say. Where the term comes from and why so many E numbers land there.
Is gelatine halal or haram? Beef, pork and where scholars differ
Gelatine is usually pork, less often beef, and the species does not have to be declared. How to check gummy sweets, yoghurt and capsules.
Is E471 halal? What the emulsifier actually is
E471 can be plant or animal derived, so the emulsifier is mushbooh when in doubt, not automatically haram. Here is how to find out what is in yours.
Is E422 (glycerine) halal? Origin and the alcohol question
E422 glycerine can be plant, animal or synthetic, so without evidence it is mushbooh. And no: glycerine is not an intoxicating alcohol.