Is E1101 (Proteases) Halal?

Proteases are enzymes that break proteins into smaller pieces. Codex groups them as INS 1101, and older lists print E1101. Some come from plants, some from microbes, and some from animal tissue, and the source is what decides the ruling.^[2]

The main proteases

So:

• Plant or microbial protease → Halal.
• From pork → not Halal.
• From cattle → Halal only from a Halal-slaughtered animal.
• Just "protease" or "enzymes" → Halal if verified.

Certifier lists put unspecified enzyme blends in the doubtful group for this reason.^[4]

Where proteases are used

• Meat tenderisers, usually papain or bromelain.
• Beer, where papain stops haze forming; beer itself is not Halal.
• Crackers and biscuits, where they relax the dough.
• Flavourings and hydrolysed proteins, where they break down soy, wheat or yeast protein into savoury flavours.
• Cheese ripening and fish sauce production.

Why you often cannot see them

Enzymes used during processing, and gone or inactive in the finished food, often do not have to appear on the label at all. That is why a product's Halal certification is more informative than its ingredient list for enzyme questions. EU rules do not list proteases as a single additive number.^[1]

Rennet, the enzyme that sets cheese, is a protease too, with its own well-known rules; see rennet and cheese. For the egg-white enzyme used in cheese, see lysozyme (E1105).