In
one of its final actions before its term ended, Indonesia’s House of
Representatives (DPR) passed the first law on halal labeling in the Muslim
majority nation.While the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI) welcomed the new
law, saying that it would give comfort to the Muslim community, both the
foreign and local business community appeared anxious over whether it would
mean extra costs for them to secure the correct halal certification.
Who will be affected?
The Halal labeling law will affect
most consumable products, including food and beverages, medicines, cosmetics,
chemicals and biological products.
It will also apply to functional
goods that can be worn, used, utilized, imported and circulated in Indonesia’s
territory.
Under Islamic law, some materials
are considered haram (forbidden, the opposite of halal) for consumption,
including pork, alcohol, blood and other things considered as containing
impurities. The law was enacted to protect the nation’s Muslim population from
being exposed to non-halal products.
The new law states that halal
checking will also include the manufacturing process, packaging, distribution,
sales and serving. Muslims need to ensure that halal products are not mixed
with non-halal products during production and distribution.
Non-halal products circulated in
Southeast Asia’s largest economy must be labeled “non-halal.”
Previously, halal certification was
supervised by the MUI. However, the new law now mandates the establishment of a
new agency, the Halal Product Guarantee Agency, known as BPJPH. This agency,
which will be supervised by the Ministry of Religious Affairs, will be
responsible for issuing halal certificates to producers.
2019, halal labeling will be
mandatory for all products circulated in Indonesia.
By AmCham Correspondent
No comments:
Post a Comment