And if it laps milk or similar food, some scholars, including Mālik and others, hold that the food may be consumed, while others hold that it must be poured away, as is the position of Abū Hanīfah, al-Shāfiʿī, and Ahmad. If, however, the milk is in a large quantity, the correct view is that it does not become impure, as explained earlier.

Shaykh al-Islām—may Allah have mercy on him—was asked:

Are Frankish cheese and broadcloth disliked? Has any imam whose opinion is authoritative declared them impure, given that the cheese is coated with pig fat, as is the broadcloth?

He replied:

Praise be to Allah.

Those who regard cheese imported from Frankish lands as disliked have mentioned two reasons:

First, pig fat is placed between the cheeses when they are transported aboard ships.

Second, they do not slaughter the animals from which the rennet is obtained in the prescribed manner. Rather, they strike the cattle on the head and do not slaughter them in the prescribed manner.

As for the first reason, at most this renders the surface of the cheese impure. Once the surface is scraped off or washed, the cheese becomes pure. For the following is established in the Sahīh: “The Prophet