Ruling on eating sweets that contain gelatin and carmine.

Today it is quite often hard to find for example candy that is halaal
for us to eat. Especially here in the western countries،a lot of the
candy contains gelatine. But there is also another substance that is
used to make the candy get the colour they have، and it is called
carmine، which is the red colour (which they use in candy and more)and
they get it from female lice.
Some moslims are not aware of this and I would appreciate if you could
explain if this is allowed for us to eat or not?.
Praise be to Allaah.
Firstly:
Some types of gelatin are of vegetable origin, and there is nothing
wrong with using this oreating foods that contain it.
Some types of gelatin are of animal origin, andthis is subject to
further discussion. Whatever thecase, there is nothing wrong with
eating foodsthat contain it because even if it comes from animals that
have not been slaughtered properly or other haraam sources, it has
been transformed into another substance that has different
characteristics.
See the answer to question no. 97541 .
Secondly:
We have not been able to find out whether what you say is true about
carmine and its being derived from female ants. If we assume that it
is indeed the case, if the sweet is not harmful then there isnothing
wrong with eating it, because of what was mentioned above about the
haraamsubstance being transformed into a different substance.
With regard to lice, there is a difference of opinion as to whether
they are naajis. Some of the fuqaha' say that theyare naajis (impure)
because they contain blood and their food is blood. Some of them say
that they are taahir (pure) because they are likened to flies. But
there is consensus that itis haraam to eat them.
Al-Duraymi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:It is haraam to eat lice
according to consensus. End quote from Hayaat al-Haywaan al-Kubra,
2/118.
It is haraam to eat lice just as it is haraam to eatmaytah (meat that
was not slaughtered properly) or drink alcohol. But if they have been
turned into another substance by means of some treatment, then there
is nothing wrong with eating that substance, asexplained above.
It should be noted that the basic principle with regard to these foods
and drinks is that they are permissible, because it cannot be said
that any of them are haraam on the basis of speculation. Similarly it
cannot be said that mostof the sweets contain gelatin, because this is
contrary to reality. If a person wants to avoid things containing
gelatin or carmine, he will find plenty of other alternatives in other
types of sweets.
And Allah knows best.