The Short Answer
J.M. Smucker has a permissible core food business, but the current screen is doubtful. The latest examined annual filing shows debt above the displayed asset-based limit, while pet-food formulations and product-level prohibited revenue require a separate qualitative review. This is a research screen, not a fatwa.
Current quantitative Sharia screen
Based on 10-K figures for the period ended 2026-04-30; calculated 2026-07-14.
6,963.7 / 16,219.4
58.6 / 16,219.4
714.9 / 16,219.4
- Financial
- Fails
- Overall
- Fails
Debt/assets is 42.93%, above the examined 33.333% limit; cash/assets is 0.36% and receivables plus cash/assets is 4.41%. Interest income remains unavailable.
- Financial
- Fails
- Overall
- Fails
Debt/assets is 42.93%, above the examined MSCI total-assets limit; product classification remains incomplete. This is not an index-membership claim.
- Financial
- Fails
- Overall
- Fails
Debt/assets is 42.93%, above the examined Malaysia SAC financial limit; this is a calculation against SAC ratios, not an official classification.
- Financial
- Not calculated
- Overall
- Not calculated
A properly licensed reproducible market-cap history is not stored; a spot estimate is not substituted.
Business-activity disclosure
J.M. Smucker sells packaged coffee, spreads, frozen handheld foods, snacks and pet-food products. Packaged food and coffee are generally permissible, while pet-food ingredients and brand-level product composition are not quantified into a universal prohibited-revenue numerator.
Limitation: The filing does not quantify pork-derived or other ingredient exposure as a reproducible Sharia numerator, and market-cap methods are not calculated.
Purification
Interest income is not separately disclosed and product-level ingredient exposure is not quantified; investors should seek qualified guidance and no fixed percentage is prescribed.
Inputs, assumptions and primary sources
- Amounts are USD millions from J.M. Smucker's April 30, 2026 Form 10-K.
- Debt is current long-term debt of 150.0 plus short-term borrowings of 420.9 plus long-term debt of 6,392.8; leases are excluded.
- Cash is 58.6 and trade receivables are 656.3.
- Fiscal-year net sales are 9,050.9.
- The filing does not provide a reproducible standalone interest-income numerator or a school-specific prohibited-food revenue numerator.
This is a reproducible financial screen, not a fatwa. A failed total-assets screen can coexist with a pass under a market-cap methodology. ZakatInvest keeps the qualitative assessment separate so numerical thresholds do not erase material context.
The current Form 10-K for the year ended April 30, 2026 reports $16,219.4 million of assets and $6,963.7 million of debt. Interest income is not separately disclosed in the examined filing, so no fixed purification rate is asserted.
Sharia Screening Methodology
Islamic scholars use several criteria to screen stocks:
- Business activity screen: Is the company's primary business halal?
- Debt ratio: Total debt / market cap must be under 33%
- Interest income: Interest income / total revenue must be under 5%
- Haram revenue: Revenue from haram sources must be under 5%
- Receivables ratio: Total receivables / total assets must be under 49–70% (varies by board)
J.M. Smucker's Business Activity
J.M. Smucker is a leading packaged consumer goods company with a portfolio of well-known household brands across three segments:
- U.S. Retail Coffee: Folgers, Dunkin' (at-home packaged coffee under license), and Café Bustelo
- U.S. Retail Frozen Handheld and Spreads: Smucker's jams and jellies, Jif peanut butter, and Uncrustables frozen sandwiches
- U.S. Retail Pet Foods: Meow Mix, Milk-Bone, 9Lives, Pup-Peroni, and Kibbles 'n Bits (Hostess sweet baked goods are now part of the broader portfolio after the 2023 acquisition)
The vast majority of revenue comes from clearly permissible product categories — coffee, jams, peanut butter, and packaged sweet baked goods. The pet food business is the area that requires closer review because some formulations contain pork-derived ingredients.
Current Quantitative Screen (April 30, 2026)
Using the latest examined Form 10-K and an asset-based presentation:
- Debt / assets: 42.93% — $6,963.7 million / $16,219.4 million
- Cash / assets: 0.36% — $58.6 million / $16,219.4 million
- Receivables + cash / assets: 4.41% — $714.9 million / $16,219.4 million
- Interest income: Not separately disclosed in the examined filing
Debt fails the displayed 33.33% asset-based limit. Market-cap denominators and averaging conventions can produce different results, so this page states exactly which denominator was used rather than presenting an unsupported market-cap percentage.
Concerns to Be Aware Of
1. Pet Food with Pork-Derived Ingredients
Some Smucker pet food brands include pork-derived ingredients. Selling pet food that contains pork raises a concern under classical reasoning that prohibits trade in pork itself. The filing does not provide a product-level split for this revenue, so conservative scholars may advise avoidance while others may require additional product and ingredient evidence.
2. Elevated Debt Levels
Smucker has used substantial debt to fund acquisitions, including the 2018 Ainsworth (Rachael Ray Nutrish) deal and the 2023 Hostess Brands deal. Total debt is high in absolute terms and exceeds the displayed asset-based threshold in the current filing.
3. Dividend Purification
Because interest income and product-level prohibited revenue are not separately quantified in the examined filing, ZakatInvest does not assert a fixed purification percentage. A qualified adviser can calculate purification if a school-specific screen permits investment.
Action required: Re-check the next filing and obtain a school-specific ruling before relying on any purification calculation.
How to Read the Quantitative Result
The ratios are ZakatInvest calculations from the April 30, 2026 filing. Schools and index providers differ on denominators, averaging and treatment of pet-food revenue; this page does not claim an official outside-agency classification.
Bottom Line
J.M. Smucker (SJM) is doubtful on the current examined screen. The core food business is generally permissible, but debt/assets is 42.93% and product-level pet-food revenue is not fully quantified. Investors should seek qualified Sharia advice and re-check new filings before committing capital.
No consumer-staples peer should be treated as automatically cleaner. PepsiCo's June 2026 total-assets screen fails on debt, and its alcohol licensing and product-level ingredient revenue require a separate business review.
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