Q: I have read that there is a difference of opinion in the Hanafi Mazhab regarding rennet which is used to produce cheese.
Can you explain to me what is rennet and what is the preferred opinion in the Hanafi Mazhab regarding the cheese produced from rennet?
A: Rennet is an ingredient that is used to produce cheese. The sharee ruling regarding rennet is as follows:
1. If the rennet is produced from non-animal sources (i.e. microbial rennet extracted from plants, etc.), then it is permissible.
2. If the rennet is produced from animal sources, then if it is produced from animals which are slaughtered according to the sharee method of slaughter, then this type of rennet is also permissible.
3. If the rennet is produced from animals which are not slaughtered according to the sharee method of slaughter, then in this case, there is a difference of opinion between Imaam Abu Hanifah (rahimahullah) and his two students, Imaam Abu Yusuf and Imaam Muhammad (rahimahumullah).
According to Imaam Abu Hanifah (rahimahullah), this type of rennet is permissible, and according to Imaam Abu Yusuf and Imaam Muhammad (rahimahumullah), this type of rennet is not permissible.
It should be borne in mind that the difference of opinion between Imaam Abu Hanifah (rahimahullah) and his two students, Imaam Abu Yusuf and Imaam Muhammad (rahimahumullah), was in regard to the rennet which would be used in the past to produce cheese.
In the past, rennet used to be produced from the curdled milk which would be obtained from a calf that is slaughtered a few hours after drinking its mother’s milk. This rennet used to be used to produce cheese.
Hence, Imaam Abu Hanifah (rahimahullah) ruled that this type of rennet (acquired from animals not slaughtered according to the sharee method of slaughter) is permissible, as there are certain Ahaadith that prove permissibility. On the contrary, the two students of Imaam Abu Hanifah (rahimahullah), Imaam Abu Yusuf and Imaam Muhammad (rahimahumullah), ruled that this type of rennet is impermissible, as it is acquired from animals not slaughtered according to the sharee method of slaughter, and there are certain Ahaadith that prove impermissibility.
Some Hanafi jurists preferred the opinion of Imaam Abu Hanifah (rahimahullah), while others preferred the opinion of his two students, Imaam Abu Yusuf and Imaam Muhammad (rahimahumullah). Therefore, in this type of rennet, it is safest to refrain on account of the difference of opinion.
However, in should be borne in mind that in today’s times, the animal rennet produced from animals which are not slaughtered according to the sharee method of slaughter, is impermissible according to all our imaams (Imaam Abu Hanifah (rahimahullah) and his two students, Imaam Abu Yusuf and Imaam Muhammad (rahimahumullah)).
The reason is that in today’s times, the rennet is produced from the stomach lining of the animal which is impure according to all our imaams. Hence, it is not permissible to consume cheese produced from rennet of animals that are not slaughtered according to the sharee method of slaughter.
And Allah Ta'ala (الله تعالى) knows best.
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