Brand, Identity and Reputation: Exploring, Creating New Realities ...

promotions, trade smuggling activities, etc.) In general, JAKIM‘s personnel lacked ―enforcement‖ characters. They are
trained more as ―religious advisors.‖ Only with strict enforcement that halal logo will be seen more credible.
The speed of issuing halal logo is another challenge facing JAKIM. Currently JAKIM does not have a full-pledge
research and development (or technical) unit which is able to process each halal application promptly. JAKIM or its
state-subsidiary (note that each Malaysian state has its own Department of Religious Affairs) would need to get
assistance from a third party to commission product testing and lab analysis as well as to perform an on-site inspection.
The so-called third parties are usually food technologists, chemists or experts from the local universities.
Initially, the halal certification was only restricted to the products that were produced and packed in Malaysia. Products
manufactured outside the country need to obtained certification from the Islamic bodies approved by JAKIM in order to
be able to be recognized as halal. This guideline was apparently change once the Government (under the Prime
Minister‘s Abdullah Badawi) in 2007 decided to transfer the halal certification task to the Halal Industry Development
Corporation (HDC), a company incorporated under the Ministry of Finance to lead the development of the country‘s
halal standards. HDC has been entrusted to direct and to coordinate the development of the industry and to facilitate the
growth and participation of local companies in this arena. This new development would allow HDC to issue
international certification for halal products in addition to national attestation. The first multinational company to
benefit from this change in guidelines was Colgate Palmolive. The company, which is the market leader in toothpaste
category, has been importing its toothpaste brands mainly from Thailand and China.
However, HDC‘s certification was later transferred back to JAKIM following the change in the country‘s leadership to
the current Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak. This flip-flopping decision has somewhat
undermine Malaysia‘s policy in this subject. Many manufacturers have become concerned over JAKIM‘s ability to
handle the certification faster than before.
Halal can create a lot of opportunities for the government, the manufacturers, the marketers and the public in general.
These opportunities however can only be realized if each party manages to identify the challenges facing them and find
the most feasible ways to address those challenges. To the Muslim consumers, products which carry halal logo have
more ―meanings‖ and are more important than those carrying ISO, GMP, HACCP or similar certifications. Halal is
―wholesome.‖ Products that go through an authorized halal certification process thus carrying an authentic halal logo
not only meet consumers‘ needs but also give them ―peace of mind‖.
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