KUALA LUMPUR, July 30 — The harmonising of halal standards globally remains a challenge in the US$4 trillion market, making it a concern for halal industry players.
Secretary-general of the Standards and Metrology Institute for the Islamic Countries (SMIIC), Ihsan Ovut, said no significant progress has been made in halal certification for decades due to lack of will for using single consensus-based standards and accredited certificates.
“We need a single standard, not regional standards (like) Gulf standard etc. This kind of standard can only be used in the region, not for global use.
“We also need a common certification and accreditation based on this standard. Otherwise, we cannot reach a real halal conformity assessment,” he said at the 12th Russia-Islamic World: Kazan Summit on Thursday.
Thus, Ovut said SMIIC – as an institute developing necessary mechanisms for the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) countries – has been preparing common standards to eliminate technical barriers to trade among its member states which include Malaysia.
A total of 41 standards has been published since the establishment of SMIIC in 2010. Of the total, 16 standards are related to halal issues, petroleum and related products (11), leather and related issues (seven), agriculture (two), textile and related issues (two), energy management (one), jewellery (one) and occupational safety and health (one).
He noted that the concept of halal certification was primarily considered to be limited to meat, but it gradually expanded to all possible aspects of Muslim life such as food and animal feed types, additives, test methods, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and finance.
Meanwhile, Head of the Russian Federal Agency on Technical Regulating and Metrology, Anton Shalev, said the agency is aiming to develop a national halal standard that covers wider aspects, including certification and medical production, in compliance with the requirements of international standards.
He pointed out that a standardisation committee of halal products, which unified over 40 different local organisations, was launched in 2017. Russia also joined an interstate committee of halal products initiated by Kazakhstan to synchronize the work on standardisation of halal services and products.
“One of our most important goals is international cooperation on standardisation and harmonisation of requirements of the local standard in compliance with the international ones, since halal industry is a huge market and huge export potential for Russian producers,” he said.
Shalev said Russia also joined SMIIC as an observer since January 2020 and is actively cooperating with its member states and hopes it will open up new opportunities for supplies of local halal products and recognition of their services in the international market.
— Bernama
