Does the presence of insects also affect halal suitability?

Bismillahi Ta’ala

Walaikum Assalam Warahmatullah,

Jazak Allahu Khayran for seeking the guidance.

The concern a Muslim shows for the purity of what is consumed is itself an act of devotion, for Allah has commanded that we partake only of what is halal and ṭayyib. This vigilance is not a mere formality but a reflection of faith and obedience, ensuring that one’s body is nourished by what pleases Allah. It is encouraging to see such zeal and care in questioning the hidden aspects of food production, such as the presence of insects, for this demonstrates a conscious effort to align daily consumption with divine guidance.

Let us try and address the concern in a systemic fashion.

Regulatory Guidelines (CFIA and FDA)

In Canada, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) makes a clear distinction between live and dead insects in food. Live insects discovered in packaged food are not acceptable and such products may trigger enforcement action under the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations. Dead insects, on the other hand, are treated as contamination. While trace and unavoidable insect fragments may be tolerated, these are evaluated on a case-by-case basis, depending on the commodity and the risk profile. Canada does not adopt a blanket “percentage allowance” of insects in food. Instead, its system is based on risk analysis and preventive controls, and in some cases commodity-specific standards define what may be acceptable.

In the United States, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issues a detailed Food Defect Levels Handbook. This handbook sets maximum defect action levels, meaning the point at which regulatory enforcement would be triggered. For example, peanut butter may contain up to thirty insect fragments per 100 grams, while wheat flour may contain up to seventy-five fragments per 50 grams. These numbers are not permissions to include insects but acknowledgements that total elimination is impossible in large-scale food production.

Sharʿī Considerations (SANHA guidelines and Classical Fiqh)

From the Sharʿī perspective, SANHA and the classical jurists emphasize that land insects are prohibited for consumption, as they are considered khabāʾith (repulsive and filthy things). This ruling is drawn from Qur’ān 7:157, where Allah states that the Prophet ﷺ “makes lawful for them the pure things and forbids them the filthy things.” Accordingly, insects fall under what is regarded by sound human nature as repulsive and are therefore not permissible to eat.

SANHA further explains that if an insect disintegrates into tiny particles within food, the food itself remains ṭāhir (pure). Nevertheless, eating those particles is not permissible unless the removal of the insect is practically impossible, such as in the case of insects embedded within fruit that have lost their life. In such cases, eating the fruit together with the remnant insect matter is tolerated. The same principle applies to situations where insects inadvertently enter food but do not impart impurity to it, even if their own consumption is prohibited.

However, when insects are intentionally processed for use, such as in the production of carmine (cochineal extract), the ruling is clear that such products are not permissible , since this involves deliberate use of an insect derivative. The only explicit exception is the locust, which is permitted by textual evidence.

Halal Suitability and Regulatory Thresholds

When viewed from the perspective of halal suitability, the regulatory tolerance of trace insect fragments does not automatically render a food product haram. The essential consideration is that these fragments are unavoidable and incidental . Islamic jurisprudence recognizes the principle of ʿumūm al-balwā (widespread hardship), which provides leeway in matters where complete avoidance is impractical. Since these insect fragments are not deliberately added and do not constitute the essence of the product, their incidental presence is excused.

Classical fiqh also lends support to this principle. Scholars have ruled that fruits with embedded insect remnants may be consumed when removal is impractical, provided that the insects themselves no longer have life. This analogy helps explain how trace contamination, when truly unavoidable, does not invalidate the permissibility of the food. Accordingly, halal certification bodies generally accept foods that fall within the unavoidable defect thresholds set by CFIA or FDA, provided no deliberate insect derivatives are used.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the presence of insects in trace and unavoidable amounts, as defined by CFIA and FDA thresholds, does not affect the halal suitability of consumer products. These thresholds exist to ensure food safety and acknowledge the practical realities of food production. From the Sharʿī standpoint, incidental and unavoidable impurities do not render food impermissible, though deliberate use of insect derivatives such as carmine clearly does. Thus, both regulatory practice and Islamic jurisprudence align in permitting food products with unavoidable insect fragments, while drawing a firm line against deliberate inclusion of insects or their extracts.

And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best
Mufti Faisal al-Mahmudi

Some references:

“…and He makes lawful for them the pure things and forbids them the filthy things” (al-Aʿrāf: 157).

It is not permissible to eat an animal with fangs that attacks with its fangs, nor insects (ḥasharāt – the small crawling creatures of the earth, singular: ḥasharah). Then it is mentioned: al-khabīth (impure) is that which sound natures find repulsive.

al-Radd: It is stated in Miʿrāj al-Dirāyah that the scholars are unanimous that what is deemed repulsive (mustakhbath) is ḥarām, based on the text: “…and He forbids them the filthy things” (al-Durr al-Mukhtār maʿa Radd al-Muḥtār, Muḥammad Amīn ibn ʿUmar ibn ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz Ibn ʿĀbidīn al-Ḥanafī [d. 1252 AH], Kitāb al-Ḍhabāʾiḥ, 6/305, Ṭ. Saʿīd).

The consumption of the crow that eats crops is permissible, but not the speckled crow. Insects are included among those things not eaten, since they are from the filthy (khabāʾith). Allah has said: “…and He forbids them the filthy things” (al-Baḥr al-Rāʾiq, Zayn al-Dīn ibn Ibrāhīm ibn Muḥammad, known as Ibn Nujaym al-Miṣrī [d. 970 AH], Kitāb al-Ḍhabāʾiḥ, 8/172, Ṭ. Saʿīd).

From Muḥammad (rahimahu Allah): If a frog dies in water, drinking from it is disliked—not due to impurity, but due to prohibition—because its parts have dissolved into it. This is a clear statement that drinking it is makrūh taḥrīman. And this is explicitly stated in al-Tajnīs, where it says: drinking it is ḥarām (Fatḥ al-Qadīr, Sharḥ al-Hidāyah, by Kamāl al-Dīn Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Wāḥid al-Siwāsī, known as Ibn al-Humām [d. 861 AH], Kitāb al-Ṭahārah, section on al-ghusl, chapter on water valid for wuḍūʾ and that which is not, 1/84, Dār al-Fikr).

As for creatures that have no blood at all—such as locusts, hornets, lizards, spiders, beetles, scorpions, parrots, and the like—their consumption is not permissible, except for locusts specifically (al-Fatāwā al-Hindiyyah, Bāb Thānī, on what animals are lawful to eat, 5/289, Ṭ. al-Rashīdiyyah).

If meat worms fall into broth, the broth does not become impure, but the broth is not to be consumed if the worms decompose in it, since they are dead creatures. Even if they are pure, the ruling is that they may not be eaten. I say: from this the ruling regarding worms in fruits and produce is known—that eating the fruit together with worms is permissible so long as the soul has not been blown into them (Radd al-Muḥtār, Ibn ʿĀbidīn [d. 1252 AH], Kitāb al-Ṭahārah, Bāb al-Anjās, 1/349, Ṭ. Saʿīd).

CFIA – Dead insects in packaged food (fact sheet):
https://inspection.canada.ca/en/food-safety-consumers/fact-sheets/specific-products-and-risks/commonly-occurring-issues-food/dead-insects-packaged-food

CFIA – Commonly occurring issues in food (overview page):
https://inspection.canada.ca/en/food-safety-consumers/fact-sheets/specific-products-and-risks/commonly-occurring-issues-food

FDA – Food Defect Levels Handbook:
https://www.fda.gov/food/current-good-manufacturing-practices-cgmps-food-and-dietary-supplements/food-defect-levels-handbook