The Department of Standards Malaysia is initiating the establishment of a Working Group on Halal Products and Services with its counterparts in Indonesia and Thailand to harmonise halal standards within the ASEAN region.
The taskforce will facilitate a platform for discussion amongst halal authorities with the aim of providing a framework to support economic cooperation and integration within member countries.
While acknowledging existing issues among halal authorities to consensually agree on a unified standard, Standards Malaysia Director General Datuk Fadilah Baharin said that member countries must start acknowledging the importance of a common regional halal standard in preparation for the establishment of a single international standardisation body.
A new landscape within the halal industry is expected to take place should a uniform halal standard using ISO methodology be successfully implemented by Dubai-led Standards and Metrology Institute for Islamic Countries, SMIIC. SMIIC is an affiliate body of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) established in 2010 with the main objectives to prepare an OIC/SMIIC Halal standard to achieve uniformity in metrology, laboratory, testing and standardisation. A total of 31 member states out of the 56 OIC Islamic states are currently members, with Bosnia-Herzegovina and Malaysia being the latest to join since November last year.
“Differences (in opinion) can have detrimental effects on competition and international trade. With a view to harmonise conformity assessment procedures, member countries shall play a full part within the limits of their resources and as a basis for their technical regulations,” she said during the Certifiers Forum at the World Halal Summit (WHS) 2015.
The main challenge faced by the global halal industry is the lack of one unified standard on what exactly is halal. There are between 500 and 3,000 certification agencies around the world, of which 80% are from non-Muslim countries. The lack of a unified standard has also raised production costs for exporting companies, as they must follow different national regulatory standards.
Fadilah said a unified standard among ASEAN countries could address these challenges and help minimise the export cost for halal products.
“Standards, technical regulations and procedures for determining conformity are essential to ensure consumer safety, increase transparency of product information and compatibility of products,” she said.
“A unified halal system will result in a mutual recognition of certificates through a recognised accreditation, reassure customer’s trust and diminish technical barriers to trade with mutual recognition,” said Farah Al Zarooni, Director of Accreditation Department, ESMA in Dubai.
“The uniformity of halal standards developed by SMIIC, which is an intergovernmental institution, will pave the way for better economic relations within the industry. We want to promote one standard and one test that are recognised throughout the globe.”
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| Source: WHS website. |
The taskforce will facilitate a platform for discussion amongst halal authorities with the aim of providing a framework to support economic cooperation and integration within member countries.
While acknowledging existing issues among halal authorities to consensually agree on a unified standard, Standards Malaysia Director General Datuk Fadilah Baharin said that member countries must start acknowledging the importance of a common regional halal standard in preparation for the establishment of a single international standardisation body.
A new landscape within the halal industry is expected to take place should a uniform halal standard using ISO methodology be successfully implemented by Dubai-led Standards and Metrology Institute for Islamic Countries, SMIIC. SMIIC is an affiliate body of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) established in 2010 with the main objectives to prepare an OIC/SMIIC Halal standard to achieve uniformity in metrology, laboratory, testing and standardisation. A total of 31 member states out of the 56 OIC Islamic states are currently members, with Bosnia-Herzegovina and Malaysia being the latest to join since November last year.
The main challenge faced by the global halal industry is the lack of one unified standard on what exactly is halal. There are between 500 and 3,000 certification agencies around the world, of which 80% are from non-Muslim countries. The lack of a unified standard has also raised production costs for exporting companies, as they must follow different national regulatory standards.
Fadilah said a unified standard among ASEAN countries could address these challenges and help minimise the export cost for halal products.
“Standards, technical regulations and procedures for determining conformity are essential to ensure consumer safety, increase transparency of product information and compatibility of products,” she said.
“A unified halal system will result in a mutual recognition of certificates through a recognised accreditation, reassure customer’s trust and diminish technical barriers to trade with mutual recognition,” said Farah Al Zarooni, Director of Accreditation Department, ESMA in Dubai.
“The uniformity of halal standards developed by SMIIC, which is an intergovernmental institution, will pave the way for better economic relations within the industry. We want to promote one standard and one test that are recognised throughout the globe.”
Further insights about the complexities of halal standardisation were shared during other sessions at the WHS. Ironically, 85% of products and raw materials produced today come from non-Muslim countries where halal accreditation processes are actually more advanced than that of the Muslim countries.
“In most cases, halal integrity within the supply chain cannot be verified throughout the entire system,” said Salih Yuksel, SMIIC AC Chair and Acting Head, System Accreditation Department, Turkish Accreditation Agency (TURKAK) during the Certifiers Forum. “There is certainly a demand and dire need to address this weak point within the halal certification bodies.”
Among the common oversights by halal certification bodies are the lack of transparency and competency. The fact that there are more than a thousand halal accreditation bodies worldwide that are not following any specific halal procedure is a telling sign, it was mentioned.
Acknowledging that the discrepancies in Islamic knowledge and practices are most likely the reasons for the impartiality, Salih said the industry must remain focused in moving forward regardless of the differences.
At the fourth session of the Academics Forum at the WHS Dr Sharifudin Mhd Shaarani, Dean, School of Food Science & Nutrition, University of Malaysia Sabah, noted that halal food science is akin to forensics. “In this era, the development of alternative food ingredients and Genetically-Modified Organisms (GMO) make the area very complex,” said Dr Sharifudin.
"Another short- term remedy we need is a halal quality assurance that ensures that every time we produce a halal product, it is truly halal. To invest time and money into doing this is relatively less expensive and (will) bring us forward (faster)."Associate Professor Dzulkifly Mat Hashim, Former Head of Halal Services Laboratory, Halal Products Research Institute, UPM Malaysia, said practicality had to be part of the equation. “We need academicians, players of the industry and the regulators to work together to solve real issues that are presented, for example, the permitted level of alcohol in a food or ingredient,” he said.
Southeast Asia is home to more than 250 million halal consumers, and countries like Malaysia, Indonesia and Singapore have had regulations to control the import of halal-certified products for years.
With more than 60% of its population being Muslims, Malaysia exported a total of RM10 billion worth of halal products last year.
Amir Sakic, Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Director of Halal Quality Certification Agency pointed out that the main goal of halal standard is to remove barriers of international trade, provide a better understanding of halal and minimise costs of doing business.
“European countries are also trying to harmonise standards for all its 27 member countries,” he said.
In closing remarks for the event Grand Mufti Emeritus of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Dr Mustafa Ceric said the focus should move from labelling to making halal products more attractive. “I always wonder what makes haram sweet. Turn that around and produce products in halal that are sweet, nice and attractive that will make people stop looking at the temptations in haram,” he said.
“We need to move away in trying to explain halal in religious terms but (to stress on) the fact that halal is good, healthy and clean. Do people buy Chanel because it is French? No. People buy Chanel because it is good,” he said to applause.
“Of course Halal is religion. We all know that. You don’t need to attend a three-day conference to tell you that. But too much emphasis on it (from a religious perspective) will be counterproductive. Don’t make simple things complicated or complicate simple things,” Dr Mustafa concluded.
The world Muslim population is expected to account for 30% of the world’s population by 2025. The global market value for trade in halal food is estimated at US$547 billion a year and analysts predicted the value to reach US$10 trillion by 2030.
Among the driving factors include a steady growth of Muslim population worldwide; rising incomes in primary markets for halal products, and increasing demand for safe, high quality halal food. Currently, the global halal product market is estimated at US$2.3 trillion, excluding Islamic finance.
The inaugural WHS in Kuala Lumpur builds on the foundation established by the Malaysian government’s decades-long commitment to develop the halal industry to its full potential, not just among the estimated 1.8 billion Muslims worldwide currently but also among the world’s non-Muslims.
The WHS 2015 is designed as a platform to provide opportunities for halal-industry stakeholders to collaborate, network, discuss and present viable ideas for the expansion and promotion of the industry, as well as to overcome the challenges it faces. The event also seeks to play the role of catalyst to introduce new structures and regulatory frameworks to increase confidence amongst consumers, industry players and investors for the halal economy.
The event concept integrates the halal trade fair MIHAS (Malaysia International Halal Showcase), and six other conferences and forums: the 8th World Halal Conference (WHC), the 6th JAKIM International Halal Certification Bodies Convention, the Certifiers Forum, Scholars Forum, Academics Forum and the Business Forum.
The star component of WHS, MIHAS, has hosted approximately 170,000 visitors from 70 nations, 4,000 companies from 48 countries, and generated more than US$3 billion in sales over the past 11 years.
Apart from the obvious economic potential, Malaysia also views the promotion of the global halal economy as an important component of the Global Movement of Moderates, an idea articulated by the Prime Minister of Malaysia, YAB Dato’ Seri Najib Tun Haji Abdul Razak, with the main goal of applying perspectives and frameworks of moderation to realise world peace and harmony.
A collaborative effort under the patronage of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI), the WHS 2015 is organised with the coordination of the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE), Halal Industry Development Corporation (HDC) and Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM).
Among the driving factors include a steady growth of Muslim population worldwide; rising incomes in primary markets for halal products, and increasing demand for safe, high quality halal food. Currently, the global halal product market is estimated at US$2.3 trillion, excluding Islamic finance.
The inaugural WHS in Kuala Lumpur builds on the foundation established by the Malaysian government’s decades-long commitment to develop the halal industry to its full potential, not just among the estimated 1.8 billion Muslims worldwide currently but also among the world’s non-Muslims.
The WHS 2015 is designed as a platform to provide opportunities for halal-industry stakeholders to collaborate, network, discuss and present viable ideas for the expansion and promotion of the industry, as well as to overcome the challenges it faces. The event also seeks to play the role of catalyst to introduce new structures and regulatory frameworks to increase confidence amongst consumers, industry players and investors for the halal economy.
The event concept integrates the halal trade fair MIHAS (Malaysia International Halal Showcase), and six other conferences and forums: the 8th World Halal Conference (WHC), the 6th JAKIM International Halal Certification Bodies Convention, the Certifiers Forum, Scholars Forum, Academics Forum and the Business Forum.
The star component of WHS, MIHAS, has hosted approximately 170,000 visitors from 70 nations, 4,000 companies from 48 countries, and generated more than US$3 billion in sales over the past 11 years.
Apart from the obvious economic potential, Malaysia also views the promotion of the global halal economy as an important component of the Global Movement of Moderates, an idea articulated by the Prime Minister of Malaysia, YAB Dato’ Seri Najib Tun Haji Abdul Razak, with the main goal of applying perspectives and frameworks of moderation to realise world peace and harmony.
A collaborative effort under the patronage of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI), the WHS 2015 is organised with the coordination of the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (MATRADE), Halal Industry Development Corporation (HDC) and Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM).
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