halallens-no/e-number-halal-status

E-Number Halal Status Reference

A curated, source-cited reference of 672 European food additive codes (E-numbers) with a halal-status analysis for each — colour, preservative, emulsifier, sweetener and more.

This is an analysis aid, not a religious ruling. It tells you which additives to scrutinise (haram or doubtful/mushbooh) and why — the final judgement is left to you and, where needed, a qualified scholar. It does not declare any finished product halal or haram.

The dataset is a point-in-time snapshot of the continuously-updated, source-cited entries maintained by HalalLens, a free halal ingredient scanner that runs in your browser (no app install required) and supports 14 languages.

Why this exists

Most "is this additive halal?" lookups online are inconsistent, unsourced, or force a binary verdict where the honest answer is "it depends on the source." This dataset takes a deliberately conservative, transparent stance:

• We classify each ingredient, not each product.
• We flag the haram and the doubtful (mushbooh), and explain the concern.
• We do not issue an automated AI verdict on whether your food is permissible — that decision stays with you.

Columns

column	description
e_code	E-number code, e.g. E120 (deduplicated, range E100–E1599)
common_name	Common chemical name where available (~79% of rows; auto-extracted, may be blank)
function	Additive class derived from the E-number range (colour, preservative, emulsifier, …)
halal_status	HALAL · MUSHBOOH (doubtful / source-dependent) · HARAM
source_dependent	true when the status genuinely depends on the manufacturing source (all MUSHBOOH)
concern_tag	Why it is flagged: animal_derived, pork_possible, insect_derived, alcohol, source_dependent, synthetic_or_mineral, plant_or_microbial, no_inherent_concern
summary	One-sentence, plain-language analysis
source_url	Canonical, source-cited page on halallens.no for this additive
last_reviewed	Review month of this snapshot

Status meaning

• HALAL — no inherent concern (synthetic, mineral, plant or microbial origin).
• MUSHBOOH — doubtful. Can be plant- or animal-derived, may involve alcohol or insect sources, or otherwise depends on the manufacturer. Verify the specific product.
• HARAM — typically derived from a prohibited source (e.g. E120 / cochineal, an insect-derived colour).

Coverage

	count
Total E-numbers	672
HALAL	545
MUSHBOOH (doubtful)	126
HARAM	1
With common name	531 (79%)

The conservative distribution is intentional: where origin is uncertain, the additive is marked MUSHBOOH so you can check, rather than guessed either way.

Methodology (summary)

Each additive's status reflects its known or possible production sources, reviewed against common halal-classification principles (animal origin, slaughter, alcohol, and insect-derived ingredients). Doubtful cases are labelled MUSHBOOH rather than forced to a binary. Full per-ingredient explanations and citations live on each row's source_url. This snapshot deliberately omits the long-form explanations, the 14-language content, and the broader ingredient corpus that power the live product.

Limitations

• Per-ingredient, not per-product. A product is only as halal as the combination of its ingredients and its handling; this dataset rates the additives in isolation.
• common_name is auto-extracted and absent for ~21% of rows — the source_url always has the full, named entry.
• It is a snapshot. Classifications are refined over time; the live pages at source_url are the current source of truth.
• Not a fatwa. For rulings, consult a qualified scholar.

Verify any label live (free, no install)

This table covers additives in isolation. To check a whole ingredient list — including additives, derivatives and multi-language labels — use the free HalalLens halal scanner in your browser. It is a halal app with nothing to install: it analyses each ingredient, highlights the haram and mushbooh ones, and leaves the final call to you. Every status in this dataset links to its source-cited entry, for example E120 / Cochineal and E471 / mono- and diglycerides.

Project home: halallens.no.

License & attribution

Released under CC BY 4.0. You may share and adapt it, including commercially, provided you credit HalalLens with a link to https://halallens.no.

Citation

@misc{halallens_enumber_halal_2026,
  title        = {E-Number Halal Status Reference},
  author       = {HalalLens},
  year         = {2026},
  howpublished = {\url{https://halallens.no}},
  note         = {Per-ingredient halal analysis of European food additive codes (CC BY 4.0)}
}