The Muslim Mindanao Halal Certification Board, Inc. (MMHCB) will work hard to have Davao City food products be Halal-certified in order for the area to take advantage of the world’s huge halal market.
This was the statement of Mariam Daud, MMHCB executive director, during the initial convergence about Muslim-friendly tourism in Davao, organizaed by the Department of Tourism in Region 11 headed by Regional Director Roberto P. Alabado III.
Daud said there is a need to meet the demands of halal certification in terms of product standards and brandings.
“Halal certification will help increase the market here in Davao Region,” Daud said.
Halal is not just a religious matter, but a preferred way of manufacturing, food preparation, goods and deliver services in order to ensure safety and quality, Daud said.
Entrepreneurs who interested to go into the halal food business has more opportunities now that Mindanao including Davao City has the country’s biggest concentration of Muslim population.
Daud also bared that Mindanao’s 40 Halal certifiers are mostly in Davao City.
“With Halal certifiers here in Davao city, it is easy to promote Halal tourism,” she said.
According to Daud, under the certification process, the producers need to have a Halal Assurance System to ensure there are no contaminants in their products and a Halal Compliance Program for each line of production in a establishment or factory.
“A company with Halal- certified products is required to observe at all times safety and quality assurance system throughout its operations to ensure that the products available to the customer are safe.
She added that a company must hire and train at least one Muslim supervisor who would oversee production of Halal products.
“Now there is a trend locally and internationally of Muslims and non-Muslims looking for halal products, so we want to capture that particular market,” Daud said.
She said that the demand by Muslims and non-Muslims alike for halal products because of the belief that they are “cleaner and better in quality.”
“We are encouraging the city for innovations across this value chain, as this could be a driver for new markets and greater profits as the global Halal industry is valued at trillions of dollars.” she said.
Aside from Daud, other resource persons who spoke during the gathering were Daniel Pantoja on the story behind Coffee for Peace; Lani Sta. Maria who discussed the concept of Islam Inside “The Spot”; Warina Jukuy who presented the Alhamdulillah Sati, Tausug House of Halal Food; and Caesar Regis, supervising tourism operations officer Region XI, who tackled the topic How to be DOT-accredited?.
