There is no doubt that cheese in itself is permissible to eat just like all dairy products such as milk and eggs. However, cheese cannot form without rennet as rennet is the ingredient which makes milk thicken and coagulate. Rennet is taken from the lining of the skin from the stomach of an animal, generally a cow. The ruling is as follows:
- If the animal is permissible to eat and slaughtered correctly then there is doubt that that cheese will be halaal.
- If the animal is impermissible for consumption (like pig) then that rennet which is produced is haram.
- If the animal is permissible to eat (cows and goats) but not slaughtered in the correct manner islamically, then there is a difference of opinion but the majority opinion within the Hanafi school of Fiqh is that it is permissible to eat.
In summary, the best approach is to eat that cheese which is labelled as suitable for vegetarians as rennet can also extracted and processed from plants. If not available, then as long as we can ensure that the rennet in cheese isn’t from pig then it is halal.
Lastly, the issue of permissibly with regards to cheese isn’t as strict as with meat. Furthermore, there are narrations which describe how the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) was presented with cheese made in Persian ruled lands and ate it without investigating further.
And Allah knows best. و الله اعلم