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@ Halal | MAY-JUNE . 2023

BY DR AZMI ABD AZIZ Chief Technical Officer , Global Haltech

INTRODUCTION

In particular , Muslims are increasing at almost 10 times the rate of non-Muslims , and the rapid growth of Muslims over the past couple of decades directly impacts the global demand for the halal market , which is obviously a leading model for business opportunities .

With the rapid growth of the Muslim population in the country and the world , the Malaysian government is taking the initiative to make standardisation of the halal logistics sector for the benefit of the public . The halal concept has gained increasing attention due to the rising Muslim population globally .

This is because the rising number of Muslims constitute that the consumption and promotion of halal food are becoming significant as it associates with quality , cleanliness and safety as underlines by the Sharia principles mention what is right and wrong in everyday life , including standards for food , family life , and business transaction .

Halal products widened the market when all consumers could consume the product . Hence , the unified halal standard is not only limited to the products ’ ingredients but also includes all activities along the supply chain .

An improved understanding of halal logistics in port operations will benefit food firms that intend to venture into the growing markets . It is crucial to ensure the halal integrity of food products . Therefore , halal customers are believed to be the best judge of third-party logistics ( 3PLs ) to evaluate their halal logistical service quality .

Halal logistics can be done by avoiding the contamination of halal elements with nonhalal elements ( Rahman et al ., 2018 ) and trying to minimise the risk of contamination . Halal logistics providers need to ensure the integrity of halal products .

Halal logistics involves managing the purchase , distribution , storage and control of material parts , consumable and nonconsumable products , and the information flows along the supply chain per Sharia law .

In Malaysia , all Halal Logistics Service Providers ( LSP ) are Halal JAKIM-certified logistics and have also applied for Halal Supply Chain Management System , Malaysian Standard ( MS ) that covers transportation , warehouse and retailing . [ MS 2400-1:2019 – Transportation , MS 2400-2:2019 – Warehousing and MS 2400-3:2019 – Retailing ].

This is one of the initiatives taken by the Malaysian government as a driving factor to comply with the standard ; the organisation must establish and apply a traceability system that enables the identification of goods and / or cargo in the transportation chain services ,

the identification of the inbound goods and or load for the processing stages from the immediate suppliers and distribution routes at the destination of the goods and or freight .

IMPORTANCE OF HALAL LOGISTICS

Halal logistic services are defined as a process of planning , implementing and managing the efficient , unified flow and storage of halalcertified raw materials , halal semi-finished or halal-finished goods from source to demand point , ensuring full compliance of the recognised halal logistics standards throughout the process ( Malaysian Standard , MS 2400:2019 ).

Halal logistics is essentially distributing halal food along the halal supply chain . Hence , all the phases of transportation , warehousing , material handling and procurement are part of the core logistics and must be Shariacompliant to avoid contamination during distribution .

Throughout the food supply chain , the logistics service provider plays a crucial role in ensuring that the raw materials , ingredients , packaging materials , storage and transportation of halal products are handled as per requirements .

Essential elements of controlling halal supply chain activities :

• Monitor halal performance controls in transportation activities , and the movements by any transportation mode must comply with the principle of Sharia . There is a risk of cross-contamination of halal products with non-halal during transportation operations .

• Issue of sharing containers , poor visibility into what inventory is in which containers , where the container is transit , history of immediate suppliers , history of prompt maintenance and segregation allocation space between halal and non-halal goods in same containers increased the risk towards halal integrity being compromised .

• Scholars have also argued that implementing halal practices can create a competitive advantage with the quality of halal logistics services . Most important to ensure that halal food quality from the point of view of Islamic law will satisfy the customers ’ expectations . ( Zailani et al ., 2018 ). There is , however , a need to provide maximum transparency about the product and processes as this may lead to food safety and drive the customers ’ attitude toward halal food purchases ( Khan et al ., 2020 ).

ISSUES

• Lack of Enforcement : Among the significant issues are lack of assistance by related agencies and lack of collaboration amongst the halal certification authorities , insufficient IT support for the database , and lack of knowledge / skill by applicants , leading