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Samenta wants Kelantan govt to reconsider halal cert for F&B operators

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The Small and Medium Enterprises Association Malaysia says the process of being halal certified is costly for small businesses.

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The Kelantan government recently announced that all food and beverage operators in the state will soon be required to obtain halal certificates to renew their business licences.

PETALING JAYA:
The Small and Medium Enterprises Association Malaysia (Samenta) has appealed to the Kelantan government not to proceed with its decision to mandate halal certification for food and beverage operators.

Samenta president William Ng said the halal certification should not be made compulsory as it would be a burden to small and medium enterprises and small traders, especially with the costs involved, Bernama reported.

“Applying for halal certification could mean up to RM200,000 per outlet if modifications are required, and up to another RM50,000 per annum if a halal coordinator is required on top of the training costs of new and existing employees,” he said in a statement.

Ng said the larger chain stores may be able to afford these stringent regulations, especially given the benefits of being halal-certified.

But for small traders, both Muslims and non-Muslims, the process and costs of having a halal certification were another layer of costs and burden in an already high-cost and low-margin business environment.

Ng suggested the state government first collaborate with F&B operators to promote halal certification and for the relevant authority to further streamline and reduce the burden and costs of obtaining such certification.

He was commenting on the Kelantan government’s announcement on Thursday that all food and beverage establishment owners in the state will soon be required to obtain halal certificates to renew their business licences.

Islamic development, dakwah, information and regional relations committee chairman Asri Mat Daud said the Kota Bharu Municipal Council will be the first to enforce this requirement.

Housing and local government minister Nga Kor Ming clarified yesterday that local authorities are not allowed to impose mandatory halal certification on food and beverage operators as a condition for business licence renewal.

He said local authorities imposing such conditions would be overstepping the jurisdiction of the Islamic development department (Jakim), which is the main authority tasked with overseeing halal certification.

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