Jello is a well-loved dessert by both children and adults, and it can often come as a surprise to many that the gelatin used in Jello is sourced from animals, specifically pigs.
If you are limiting your pork intake or have religious or dietary restrictions against consuming animals, you might be wondering if Jello is pork. I looked into it, and here is what I found!
Is Jello Pork?
Jello does not contain pig meat, but the gelatin used in Jello is derived from pork. Depending on the brand, the gelatin could be sourced only from pig parts, cow parts, or a combination of both. Currently, the popular Jell-O brand uses pigskin for Jell-O’s gelatin. However, Jello is not derived from pig hooves because pig hooves do not produce collagen.
In case you are curious to learn more about what pig parts are used in making Jello and which Jello brands use pig-based gelatin, keep reading!
What Part Of The Pig Is In Jell-O?
Jello-O uses gelatin that is sourced from pigskin. However, there is no way to confirm whether the gelatin is made only from pigskin or if Jell-O is mixed with other animal parts.
Traditionally, gelatin is made from the bones, hides, ligaments, and tendons of cows and pigs.
As such, it is always possible that the majority of the ingredients used in Jell-O’s gelatin is pigskin and the rest are a combination of other pig parts.
Is Jell-O Made From Pork Or Beef?
Jell-O is mainly pig-based since the primary source of their gelatin is pigskin. However, there’ is no telling whether cow bones or hides are also mixed with Jell-O’s gelatin.
Is There Pork In Jell-O Pudding?
Jell-O Pudding, whether it be Instant or Cook & Serve, does not contain gelatin. To thicken the Jell-O Pudding, modified food starch and cornstarch are used instead of gelatin. As such, Jell-O Pudding has no pork in it whatsoever.
Nonetheless, there are Jello pudding brands in other countries that use gelatin, and there is a big chance that their gelatin is either cow or pig-sourced unless stated otherwise.
Is There Jell-O Made From Pig Fat?
Currently, Jell-O is not known to use pig fat or lard as the source of their gelatin. Additionally, the additives used in Jell-O products do not contain pig fat.
Similarly, other Jello brands typically source their gelatin from the hides and bones of cows, not from lard.
Is Jell-O Made Out Of Pigskin?
Jell-O may or may not be made solely from pigskin. However, it is known that pigskin is the primary source of the gelatin Jell-O uses.
Nonetheless, there is still a chance that other pig parts or cow parts like bones and ligaments are used in part to produce Jello-O’s gelatin.
Is Jell-O Made Out Of Pig Hooves?
While it is possible to produce gelatin from pig feet, specifically through the tendons and skin, it is not possible to produce gelatin out of pig hooves.
Unlike other animals, pigs have both trotters and hooves, and the hooves generate keratin. However, it is not keratin that is needed to produce gelatin, but collagen.
Moreover, there are no known brands that claim to use pig feet to produce gelatin even if pig feet are a rich source of collagen.
Is There Beef In Jell-O?
Jell-O may have beef although there is no way to confirm if Jell-O has beef. At present, the known gelatin source of Jell-O is pigskin.
However, there is a chance that Jell-O is also partially made using cow bones, hides, and ligaments, even in small amounts.
Does Jello Come From Horse Hooves?
Contrary to popular belief, the gelatin used in Jello does not come from horse hooves.
Technically, it is impossible to make gelatin out of horse hooves because horse hooves do not have collagen. Like pig hooves, horse hooves produce another protein called keratin.
Are All Gelatin Made From Pork?
Not all gelatin is made from pork, although a considerable amount of gelatin is pig-based.
Like pigs, cows are a popular source of gelatin. Moreover, both pigs and cows are common by-products of the meat industry, making cows and pigs more viable than other gelatin sources.
Additionally, a mix of cow and pig bones, skin, and ligaments may be used to create gelatin.
Other animal sources of gelatin are fish and chicken although fish and chicken are not as popular as pigs and cows for gelatin.
What Brand Of Jello Does Not Have Pork?
Jell-O’s Snack Pack and Instant Pudding variants do not contain gelatin and are therefore pork-free.
Some gelatin brands that use grass-fed beef gelatin are Vital Protein and Great Lakes. Additionally, there are Jello and gelatin brands that do not use animals at all.
At present, the most popular vegan gelatin alternatives are Lieber’s Unflavored Jel,
Jel Shots, Simply Delish Jel Dessert, and Bakol Jel Dessert.
Does Strawberry Jell-O Have Pork In It?
Strawberry Jell-O contains pork because it is made of pig-based gelatin. As for other strawberry-flavored Jello, whether or not strawberry-flavored Jello contains pork depends on the brand.
A popular strawberry-flavored Jello that does not have pork is Simply Delish Strawberry Jel Dessert.
Is Jell-O Halal?
Generally, Jello is not halal. A majority of the Jello brands today are made from pigs and cows. Additionally, most of the cows are not slaughtered according to Islamic guidelines.
Nevertheless, there are numerous plant-based Jello in the market as well as gelatin that consumers can easily turn into halal Jello at home.
Moreover, there are Jello and gelatin brands that are halal-certified beef gelatin Muslims can use as an alternative to mainstream Jello.
How Is Jello Made?
To make Jello, the gelatin is mixed with sweeteners and food coloring to achieve the desired Jello flavor.
As for the gelatin, suitable animal parts must first be acquired. Usually, gelatin is derived from the bones, tendons, ligaments, and hides of cows and pigs.
These parts are then boiled to begin the extraction of the collagen in them. Afterward, the cow and pig parts are dried and treated with either acid or base.
Finally, the parts are filtered and the collagen is fully extracted. When the collagen has dried, the collagen gets ground into powder.
Read our related articles to discover if Jello is vegan, if Jello goes bad, and if Jello hydrates you.
Conclusion
Jello contains gelatin, which is traditionally sourced from pigs, cows, or both. As such, a large majority of Jello brands and products today have pig bones and hide.
However, Jello typically does not contain additives derived from pig. Additionally, meat is never used to produce gelatin because only the bones, hides, and ligaments of pigs are used.