KUALA LUMPUR — The existing halal certification laboratory will be upgraded to produce more experts in halal certification, especially among Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) graduates, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
He said the move was important to empower the country’s halal industry which currently provides more than 25,000 job opportunities.
Ahmad Zahid, who is also the Malaysian Halal Council chairman, said the halal certification will be given focus at the tabling of the 2024 Budget because of the halal industry’s potential, which is worth over US$1.3 trillion.
It is also because Malaysia needs to continue to be a country that dominates the halal industry at the international level, he told reporters after launching the Halal on Track Programme at Dewan Tunku Canselor, Universiti Malaya, here today.
The programme, held for the first time and mooted by Ahmad Zahid himself, brought together more than 2,000 halal industry entrepreneurs.
Regarding a proposal to shorten the duration of the halal certification process from 30 days to 23 days, Ahmad Zahid, who is also Minister of Rural 
and Regional Development, said it would bring a new image to Malaysia.
Even with the shorter period, we will not compromise in terms of quality and the standards set in the issuing of the halal certificate, he said, adding that the halal certification by the Islamic Development Department Malaysia (JAKIM) is accepted worldwide.
He said Malaysia’s halal certification process is praised by countries all over the world because of the scientific approaches used in testing not only food and beverage products but also pharmaceuticals, as well as banking, insurance and other services. — Bernama
