KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia and Indonesia have been leading discussions towards consolidating the halal logo at the global level, says Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
He said 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 (Jakim) as the benchmark on how halal certifications are issued.
He said 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 told reporters after partaking in the Asean-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Economic Forum.
Ahmad Zahid also said 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 added.
On another matter, Ahmad Zahid said they are also looking to form an Asean Halal Council, alongside a Halal Commission.
He said a working paper on establishing the Halal Commission is in the works.
Speaking on the same issue, Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz said several Asean and GCC countries, as well as China are keen to work with Malaysia to share experiences in the halal industry.
He said they voiced this as Malaysia is being seen as a leader in the industry and they want the nation to share experiences and technical issues related to it.
Tengku 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.
