Jakarta (ANTARA) - Halal certification is important to improve the competitiveness of products of micro and small enterprises (MSEs), Head of the Religious Affairs Ministry's Halal Product Assurance Agency (BPJPH) Aqil Irham stated.
"This halal certificate is important to improve the class of our MSEs products. Halal is not just about religious matters but also the market, industry, and economy," he noted here, Monday.
Indonesia should have a strong halal product ecosystem since the demand for halal products has currently becomes a global trend, he remarked.
The halal product industry has developed and expanded. Currently, the halal product industry does not just develop in countries with a Muslim population but also in countries that have a non-majority Muslim population, he remarked.
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The development trend of the halal product industry can be seen from the rising cooperation requests for halal certificate acknowledgement from the halal certification institution abroad, he highlighted.
The BPJPH has received at least 97 cooperation requests from halal certification institutions in 40 countries, with non-Muslim population as the majority.
"They seek (to ink) an MoU with us, so that the halal certificate that they issue abroad can be accepted in Indonesia," Irham explained.
"Their goal is to have their halal products accepted in Indonesia that has a Muslim population as the majority," he stated.
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To this end, the Indonesian government encourages MSEs to handle halal certification, so that their products do not lose the competition, he remarked.
The agency has streamlined the halal certification process for MSEs.
"The BPJPH has also reduced the tariff for regular halal certification, from Rp3 million to just Rp650 thousand. Meanwhile, the tariff for self-declaration for halal certification has also been reduced to just Rp230 thousand," he stated.
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