Malaysia leads charge for unified halal logo worldwide

Proposed unified halal logo set to be discussed at World Halal Council meeting in Saudi Arabia in November

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (MNTV) – Malaysia and Indonesia have been leading discussions towards consolidating the halal logo at the global level, says the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

According to The Star, he says the aim is that instead of having different logos from different countries, the one halal logo to be used is by the Malaysia Islamic Development Department, or Jakim.

He says Malaysia and Indonesia are hoping to bring this up at the World Halal Council meeting, set to be held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in November.

“We will not compromise on halal standards. Jakim has a very high standard of halal certification which has been recognised by 88 halal bodies globally,” he says.

Ahmad Zahid also says there are 40 countries that have established cooperation with Jakim on this matter. 

“Let us be at the front line so we can help other countries. “We have also seen GCC countries being very committed towards Malaysia’s efforts here. “China has also held discussions with us on this matter,” he adds.

Ahmad Zahid says they are also looking to form an Asean Halal Council, alongside a Halal Commission. He says a working paper on establishing the Halal Commission is in the works.

Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Zafrul Abdul Aziz says several Asean and GCC countries, as well as China are keen to work with Malaysia to share experiences in the halal industry.

He says Malaysia is being seen as a leader in the industry and they want the nation to share experiences and technical issues related to it.

Zafrul said that as an open economy, it is important for Malaysia to increase its involvement in new blocs in facing global geopolitical and economic challenges.