KUALA LUMPUR: The halal certification process will continue to be further improved by Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim) after the department successfully expedited the certification process to within 30 days, says Dr Zulkifli Hasan.
The Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Religious Affairs) said the improvements by Jakim had resulted in very convincing growth of the halal certification revenue which spiked to over RM12mil in 2023 alone.
Zulkifli also attributed the faster halal certification process to the 100 additional halal auditors that were approved during Budget 2025 last month.
“This will also be worked on and improved from time to time as we have seen an increase in applications and approvals so far this year.
“We saw a positive trend as Jakim managed to collect RM12,153,644 from halal certification fees in 2023, meaning the total amount collected from 2013 to 2023 has peaked at over RM80mil.
“The move has also improved the MYeHALAL system and helped to strengthen the halal ecosystem itself,” he told the Dewan Rakyat on Wednesday (Nov 6).
Zulkifli also revealed that the ministry was currently developing a MYeHALAL 2.0 system which would further accelerate the process of halal certification through the use of technology.
He added that the revenue from halal certification fees had been used to continue the implementation of various halal-certification advocacy programmes.
This included the Halal on Track programme which provided facilities and halal clinics to guide local industries and even individual businesses on how to get a halal certificate.
The funds were also used to collaborate with various institutions such as the Malaysian Highway Authority (LLM) which assists Rest and Recreation (R&R) areas get halal certification.
“We continue to help food and beverage businesses obtain the relevant certificate without having to deal with bureaucratic red tape and long waiting periods,” he added.
Zulkifli was responding to supplementary questions from Dr Mohammed Taufiq Johari (PH-Sungai Petani) and Datuk Idris Ahmad (PN-Bagan Serai) on how long it takes for a business to obtain a halal certification and how revenue from halal certification fees were being channeled back to the people respectively.
