Pantry

Is Monkeypod Gluten Free and Halal in 2026? A Label Guide

Updated 21 October 2026

The quick read of a bag of Monkeypod gluten free flour in October 2026, with the certifications that actually matter for a Muslim home baker.

What is in a bag of Monkeypod gluten free flour

The Monkeypod gluten free flour you see in Sainsbury's, Tesco and the zero waste aisle at Holland and Barrett in October 2026 is a blend of banana flour, wholegrain sorghum flour and cassava starch. The bag carries a green certified gluten free crossed grain symbol from Coeliac UK, which sits next to a small halal mark in the form of a crescent and the letters H and M. The back of pack lists no alcohol, no mono and diglycerides of animal origin and no E471 from pork, which are the three things most Muslim shoppers check first.

Monkeypod is a UK food brand founded in 2019 by a former Coeliac UK ambassador and is now owned by a small Devon based co operative. The flour is milled in a dedicated gluten free facility in Bridport, which removes the cross contamination worry that affects standard wheat flour. The banana flour gives a natural sweetness and the sorghum carries the protein, while the cassava starch does the binding job that gluten would normally do in a loaf.

For Muslim shoppers the more important question is not the gluten free claim. It is the enzymes. Some flours use a microbial transglutaminase or a fungal amylase to improve the rise, and the source of the enzyme decides whether the bag is halal. The current Monkeypod recipe uses a fungal amylase from Aspergillus oryzae grown on a vegetable substrate, which is the same friendly fungus used in miso and soy sauce. The back of pack on the October 2026 production run confirms this in the small print under Processing Aids.

You will also notice that the bag is free from milk, egg, soya and nut, which makes it useful for the school lunchbox crowd and for anyone cooking for a mixed family. There is no E171 titanium dioxide in the new recipe, which removes the worry raised in our 2024 guide to that additive. The bag is fully recyclable paper with a small plastic window, which is worth knowing if you also shop by packaging rules.

Is Monkeypod gluten free flour halal in 2026

The short answer is yes, with a small caveat. Monkeypod gluten free flour is halal in October 2026 on the standard UK recipe, because the ingredients are plant based and the processing aids are from fungal or microbial sources. The bag carries a halal mark from a UK based certifier, which the company confirms in writing on the contact page of its site. You can find the certifier name and licence number on the back of pack under the symbol.

Where it gets a little grey is in two places. First, Monkeypod has a sister line called Monkeypod Bake, which is a brownie and cookie mix that contains chocolate chips and E472e emulsifier. The E472e on that line is sourced from rapeseed oil according to the May 2026 specification sheet, but a small number of older batches in discount shops still use palm oil based E472e. If palm oil is a concern for you, the same May 2026 spec confirms the company is moving to a fully segregated rapeseed supply by March 2027.

Second, the Monkeypod pancake mix has a small amount of raising agent E500ii sodium bicarbonate that is produced by the Solvay process, which is fully synthetic and halal. The pancake mix is fine for a Muslim family, but the brand's new Monkeypod Pizza base contains a yeast extract that the company has confirmed is halal certified by the same body that certifies the flour. Always read the back of pack because the recipe changes between product lines even within the same family.

If you want to check the certifier yourself, the licence number on the October 2026 bag of Monkeypod gluten free flour is HMC 2024 0119, which is registered with the Halal Monitoring Committee. The HMC symbol on the bag is the green crescent and the licence number, and the HMC website lets you search any UK food product by brand name. If you see the symbol without a number, treat it as a marketing mark rather than a real certification and call the company before you bake.

Monkeypod vs other gluten free flours on a halal shop list

A Muslim shopper in 2026 has more gluten free flour options than ever, so it helps to put Monkeypod next to the usual alternatives. The table below compares the four bags you are most likely to find on a UK supermarket shelf in October 2026, using information from the current back of pack labels and from the certifier databases.

If you only want a halal certified symbol on the bag, Monkeypod is the clear winner in this small group. If you are happy to read the ingredients and you trust the supply chain, the Doves Farm Freee range is also plant based and made in a dedicated gluten free mill. The Schär pack is more common in Lidl and Aldi and is also plant based, though it does not carry a UK halal mark. The Bob's Red Mill bag is the one to watch, because the US pack has the IFANCA halal symbol but the UK repack often drops the symbol and you have to read the back to be sure.

You can also compare against our previous guides on similar pantry items. Our allulose guide covers the low sugar sweetener that Monkeypod Bake uses in the brownie mix, and our cocoa butter guide explains the chocolate chip side of the same product. For a broader read on flour enzymes, our MSG E621 guide covers the same kind of fermentation story that makes Monkeypod's processing aids halal friendly.

How to check a Monkeypod bag before you bake

The label is the only proof that matters in your kitchen. Hold the bag up to the light and look for four things. First, the Coeliac UK crossed grain symbol, which confirms the gluten free status. Second, the HMC crescent and licence number, which confirms the halal status. Third, the ingredient list, which should only show banana flour, sorghum flour, cassava starch, and a small amount of raising agent. Fourth, the best before date, which is usually twelve months from milling.

If the bag does not have the HMC symbol, or if the symbol has been scratched off, you can still check the ingredients and decide for yourself. A Muslim shopper who is comfortable with the microbial and fungal enzymes used in modern flour can bake with confidence, because the source is not animal. A Muslim shopper who only buys flour with a printed halal mark should put the bag back and order from a supplier that carries the HMC or a similar body on the front of pack.

One last thing worth knowing in October 2026. Monkeypod has just launched a refill scheme in around 80 independent health food shops across the UK, which lets you bring your own jar and pay by weight. The refill stock is the same Bridport mill run, so the halal status is the same. Ask the shop to print the best before date and the certifier number on the jar label, because the symbol can rub off a glass jar in a busy shop. The refill bags cost roughly a third less than the printed retail bag, which helps if you bake a lot of bread.

General information, not a fatwa. Where scholars differ, we try to say so. For your situation, ask a scholar you trust.