Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
My cousin told me that adherents of the Hanafi madhab are allowed to consume food items containing gelatin because ‘it is our belief’ that the ingredients therein undergo a process in which they become unrecognizable and thus permissible for consumption under Shari’ah. Is this true?
Walaikum assalam wa rahmatullah,
I pray that this finds you well, and in the best of health and spirits. May Allah grant you all good and success in this life and the next.
According to the position we understand and hold to be true, the change gelatin undergoes is not sufficient to be considered “essential transformation”. Thus, gelatin from unslaughtered animals–as is the case with most gelatin in the West–is unlawful.
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Faraz Rabbani