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Doubts still surround implementation of Halal Law
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When it comes to food, Muslims have their own rules only to eat foods which were prepared according to their religious practices. (Shutterstock/-)
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s the country with the largest Muslim population in the world, coupled with its growing middle class, Indonesia has great potential to become a major hub in the international halal market.
The government issued a law to regulate halal products in 2014 to support the halal market, but it is still ineffective because a number of regulations to implement the law have not been issued.
Halal Law No. 33/2014 specifically requires all consumable products, such as food, beverages, drugs, cosmetics, chemical products, biological products, genetically engineered products, or any other goods that can be used by humans, distributed and traded within Indonesia, to get halal certification by Oct. 17, 2019.
The law mandates that the government establish the Halal Certification Agency (BPJPH) no later three years after the enactment of the law and issue implementing regulations two years after the enactment of the law.
The BPJPH was set up in October 2017 to oversee the halal certification process, which was previously handled solely by the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI). However, none of the implementing regulations had been issued until now. According to the law, the regulations should have been issued in mid-October 2018 at the latest.
According to the Religious Affairs Ministry, the implementing regulations are still in the finalization stage, awaiting initial approval from other relevant ministries. The absence of implementing regulations has raised some questions on the government’s seriousness in enforcing the Halal Law.
One of the questions is related to the existence of the Halal Inspection Agency (LPH), which has the right to issue or extend the halal certification before and after 2019. Based on the law, companies are required to apply for halal certification through the BPJPH.
