A laboratory managed by the Department of Science and Technology (DoST) in Region 12 will be operational next year to help the Philippines position itself as a primary halal producer for Muslim countries.

Regional director Zenaida Hadji-Raof Laidan, said the Philippine Science and Technology Halal Laboratory in Koronadal, South Cotabato can become an authority in regulating the production of halal food and maintaining the country’s integrity in the export market.
Laidan said with the ISO certification the laboratory has an authority to certify and accredit private certifying bodies to address calls for a single halal certifying authority.
The laboratory will be implemented by phase until 2010 with an initial budget of P50 million for the construction of the building and other components.
The budget, she said, would reach P400 million if all the necessary facilities are bought through the assistance of more technologically-advanced countries with halal production such as Brunei and Thailand.
“Halal is a very sensitive issue. It will help the Ulamas who have the religious authority, DoST will be concerned with the certification and accreditation,” she said.
Sittie Amina Jain, assistant regional director of the Department Trade and Industry-IX, said the laboratory is a step up in the campaign to regulate halal export products.
She said Muslim countries insist on determining the standards employed by the exporter, noting the number of times halal exports were returned to the country because it did not meet the accepted standards.
Jain said the laboratory can also assign a quality seal for all halal exports.
Stakeholders in Mindanao’s industry met yesterday for the creation of a Mindanao Halal Food Industry Development Plan, a three-year road map on the development of the halal industry.
The plan which started this months until July 2009 will cover specific strategies, targets, programs and projects on halal, and plot areas of cooperation with related industries like agriculture, food processing, manufacturing, halal ingredients, plus branding and promotion.
Meanwhile, a regional official asked for an executive order from Malacañang to give more teeth to laws covering halal certification in the country and deflect the apparent “turf war” among departments tasked to harmonize government programs for the country to meet international standards.
Sani D. Macabalang, director of Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources in Region 12, pointed a systemic flaw on the joint administrative orders signed by the concerned agencies since nobody wants to be subsumed by another department in the implementation of the halal export trade development program.
Memorandum Order 201 issued on December 23, 2005 directed the Department of Trade and Industry as the lead agency, Department of Agriculture, Department of Health, Department of Science and Technology, Department of Tourism and Office of the Muslim Affairs to ensure compliance with accepted standards on halal certification.
“What is their authority? Is it binding to all government (agencies)? This is my apprehension... every legal officer are defending the clout of his agency,” he said.
The Presidential executive order, Macabalang said, carries a lot more weight than a mere administrative order issued by the departments involved and give the ulama-led Philippine National Standard (PNS) on Halal Food more clout.
“Let’s put teeth to all the things mentioned in the PNS. Without the enabling act, is there anybody who will respond to the PNS?”
The official said the proposal was already recommended to Trade Secretary Peter Favila and Mindanao Economic Development Council chair, Usec. Virgilio Leyretana, for action.