By Siti Baaqiah Mamat and Nur Ashikin Abdul Aziz
KUALA LUMPUR, April 16 (Bernama) — Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Secretary-General Tan Sri Iyad Ameen Madani has stressed the need for having one regulatory body for Halal certification, led by the Jeddah-based organisation.He said an OIC-level body should act as the referral organisation for halal certification as there have been too many regulatory bodies set up in countries worldwide for such certification.
“Because Halal is Halal, it doesn’t matter whether it is in Jakarta or Senegal or Armenia or Saudi Arabia. There has to be one definition, one standard, one technical description,” he told Bernama in an interview.
Madani said having one universal Halal standard could create peace of mind among the over 1.6 billion Muslim consumers worldwide.
According to reports, there are more than 400 Halal certifying bodies and organisations in the world, but not all are recognised or registered with some international organisations.
In April last year, the OIC gave the mandate to the Standards and Metrology Institute for Islamic Countries (SMIIC) to introduce a Halal standard that would be acceptable to all Muslims.
The SMIIC is responsible for developing a set of universal Halal standards, called the OIC-SMIC Halal standards, for Halal manufacturing units, certification bodies and accreditation agencies.
The global Halal market, worth US$1.1 trillion in 2013, is estimated to reach US$1.6 trillion in 2018.
