Diverse halal standards in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Brunei: their effect on regional halal food trade industry development

The increase in the global Muslim community and the rising international concern towards halal product quality has brought limelight both the economic and cultural aspect of the halal food sector. With 1.9 billion Muslims worldwide and increasing health consciousness among non-Muslim consumers, the industry is experiencing significant growth. Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei with their accreditation agencies such as BPJPH, JAKIM, and MUIB provide set high standards of food safety thus encouraging customer confidence and credibility within the market. Hence, this qualitative study examines to examine the impact of the various Halal Standards in Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei on the growth of the Halal food trade in the region. Documentary survey and semi structured interviews were conducted with the following target groups; halal authority bodies, policymakers, industry players, academicians, and consumers. Findings imply that multiple and inconsistent halal standards act as trade barriers, inflate costs, and complicate compliance, resulting in economic disadvantages and inefficiencies. This lack of a cohesive standard requires extra audits, paperwork, and inspections which, in turn, increases costs and hinders entry into the market. In essence, the study implies that integration of the halal standards across these countries may remove operational inefficiencies, economies of scale and open market frontiers to boost the region’s competitiveness within the global halal economy market. Future research should investigate different strategies regarding to ensure halal standard harmonization and determine its potential consequences for the global economy.

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