Halal Food Certification Challenges And Their Implications For Muslim Societies Worldwide

Halal (legal or permitted) food regulations define what Muslims are allowed to eat. Because there are both ingredients and processes that are controversial, these conflicts makes it hard for consumers to determine which foods are Halal. In principal, consumers have the right to obtain information from the companies producing food and to be assured that the information is accurate. But a Halal certification system, using trademarked symbols, provides that same guarantee to consumers with much less effort. However, there are currently over 200 Halal certification bodies in the world, so consumers need to understand the differences between these organizations. The attempt to create a unified halal standard is unlikely to be successful unless the standard is broad enough to allow for legitimate differences on critical issues. Thus, any standards document that emerges that wishes to be broadly accepted within the Muslim community will have to accept and clarify these conflicting standards. Thus, some Halal certification bodies will be unacceptable to other certification bodies. Whether Halal certification should be regulated and/or organized by the state or done without government involvement is a debate that should occur in each country. The outcome of both establishing a broad standard and its implementation will have a significant impact on the future of this now multi-billion dollar business world-wide serving both Muslim and non-Muslim consumers.

Keywords

Halal food certification, Islam, International trade, Halal standard, Halal foods