PETALING JAYA: Bureaucracy and high costs to meet requirements have been cited as the reasons why many Malay-owned small and medium sized businesses (SME)’s do not apply for Halal certification.
Citing industry players, The Malaysian Insight said prerequisites such as having an office is simply beyond the reach of many SMEs.
This comes amidst revelation by Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Mujahid Yusof that many bumiputra entrepreneurs have yet to apply for halal certification from the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (Jakim).
Puzzled by this, Mujahid said with Jakim halal certification, a product is not only instantly recognised as using halal ingredients but also is hygienic regardless of whether it is Muslim or non-Muslim produced.
He urged bumiputra and Muslim producers who have applied for the Jakim halal certification to do so.
He also said data from Jakim shows that more than 60% of halal product manufacturers are multinational companies owned by non-Muslims.
“With halal certification, bumiputra companies will be able to compete with multinationals not only domestically but in the foreign markets as well, giving their products more access and consumer confidence,” he said.
