Haram E numbers: which additives are flagged, and why

Updated October 3, 2026 by Kamal Nasir

There is no single official list of haram E numbers. Halal certifiers publish their own lists, and they flag additives for the same few reasons: the additive can come from pork, from animals not slaughtered according to Islamic law, from insects or from alcohol. A few, such as E120 (carmine) and E904 (shellac), are disputed between scholars. Below is what the named sources say, grouped by reason. It is a summary of their positions, not a ruling.

Why some E numbers are flagged

An E number identifies an approved food additive, and the UK government publishes its current list. The code tells you what the substance is, not where it came from, and for most halal questions the source is the whole issue.

IFANCA's Halal Shopper's Guide uses two categories. Haram/Avoid covers ingredients it calls unquestionably haram and present in large amounts, such as pork, lard and gelatin. Investigate Further covers components used in small quantities that can come from haram animals, alcohol, or halal animals slaughtered by non-Muslims. Every E number the guide names sits in the second group. IFANCA adds that the guide is not comprehensive and that there is no substitute for certified halal products.

Animal-derived additives often listed as haram

• Gelatine (often printed in lists as E441): IFANCA lists gelatin under Haram/Avoid. Gelatine does not appear on the UK's current list of approved additives, so most labels print the word rather than a number. On pork gelatine, the majority of scholars hold it impermissible, while al-Qaradaghi and the Islamic Organization of Medical Sciences hold that transformation (istihalah) makes it permissible, as an article on Islamweb sets out.
• E542, edible bone phosphate: Halal Authority India's E-number sheet gives "Haraam if the bones from pig". E542 is not on the UK's current approved list.
• E631, disodium inosinate: the same sheet gives halal if obtained from sardines, mushbooh if made from brewer's yeast extract, and haraam if extracted from pig meat. It lists E635 as mushbooh because it combines E627 and E631.

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Additives that depend on the source

This is the largest group: mostly emulsifiers, fatty acids and glycerol, which can be made from plant oils or animal fats. IFANCA's Investigate Further list includes E-304, E-322, E-422, E-431 to E-436, E-442, E-445, E-470a, E-470b, E-471, E-472a to E-472f, E-473 to E-477, E-479, E-481 to E-483, E-491 to E-495 and E-570.

Halal Authority India's sheet gives the same shape of answer for most of them. E471, E472, E481 and E482 read "Mushbooh, Halal if it is from plant fat, Haraam if it is from pork fat", and E422 (glycerol) reads halal from plant fat and haraam from pork fat. Its entry for E322, lecithin, is halal when obtained from soy or egg yolk.

Where scholars and certifiers disagree

• E120, cochineal or carmine: the Federal Territory Mufti office in Malaysia (Irsyad al-Fatwa 817, December 2023) holds it not permitted, on the majority view that insects are not eaten, and records that the Maliki school permits insects. The Indonesian Ulama Council's Fatwa 33 of 2011 holds cochineal colouring halal as long as it is beneficial and not harmful. Halal Authority India's sheet gives "Haraam according to Hanafi Fiqqah".
• E904, shellac: a ruling on Muftionline by Mufti Zakaria Makada, approved by Mufti Ebrahim Salejee, says "Foods containing shellac are halaal". Halal Authority India's sheet gives it halal when not treated with alcohol.
• E920, L-cysteine: IslamQA.info answer 248124 permits foods containing it whatever the source, on the grounds of transformation. Halal Authority India's sheet calls it mushbooh, haraam when obtained from human hair, notes feathers as a third source and records a difference of opinion among scholars.

How to use any E number list

• Treat a list as a starting point. Lists disagree because certifiers assume different sources and follow different schools.
• Look for a halal certification mark you trust: it answers the question for the whole product, including processing.
• Read the words around the number. "Vegetable glycerin" or "soy lecithin" answers what the bare code cannot.
• When the source is not stated, ask the manufacturer, and ask your own scholar about disputed items.

Checking E numbers on your phone

Dalil, a halal ingredient scanner for iPhone, takes a typed E number or reads an ingredient panel with the camera, and shows each reading with links to the published rulings and the regulation behind it. For 11 topics where rulings disagree, including gelatine and carmine, it shows both positions with the bodies that hold them, and it never says a product is halal or certified.

Questions people ask

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