Indonesia's food companies rush for halal seal of approval by 2024

Government hopes to spur spending with new certification requirement

20230508N Halal 2

A mark an a display case containing hot food at a convenience store, indicating the items within are Halal-certified. (Photo by Koya Jibiki)

KOYA JIBIKI, Nikkei staff writer

JAKARTA -- Restaurants, retailers and other food businesses in Indonesia are scrambling to meet a government mandate requiring official certification for their halal products by 2024, as Jakarta seeks to promote economic activities compliant with Islamic law.

At one FamilyMart convenience store in Jakarta, staffers would face questions constantly from customers about whether the steamed buns in its display case were halal. Those questions have stopped since the store displayed a seal from Indonesia's Halal Product Assurance Organizing Agency (BPJPH), a cashier there said.

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