Round table “Prospects of Accreditation of Halal Certification Bodies in Russia”

Organizing partners: The Federal Accreditation Service, the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation

Venue: Hall 14, International Exhibition Centre Kazan Expo, Kazan

Time: May 18, 2023, 10:00–11:20

Moderator: Alexander Zorin, Deputy Director of the Centre for Leadership and Digital Transformation Teams Training at GSPM RANEPA

Speakers:

Anton Shalaev, Head of the Federal Agency on Technical Regulating and Metrology;

Nazari Skrypnik, Head of the Federal Accreditation Service;

Vladimir Gutenev, Chairman of the Committee on Industry and Trade of the State Duma;

Moteb Almezani, Director General of the Accreditation Centre, Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GAC);

Rafik Mukhametshin, Chairperson of the Project Technical Committee on Standardization “Halal Products and Service”, Rector of the Russian Islamic University;

Maksim Protasov, Head of the ANO “Russian Quality System”;

Riad Soussi, Assistant Secretary General of the Standards and Metrology Institute for the Islamic Countries (SMIIC);

Almaz Kaiyrbekov, Director of the Centre for the Development of the Halal Industry of the Kyrgyz Republic;

Absamat Akimov, Deputy General Director of the National Accreditation Centre LLP, the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The establishment of infrastructure necessary for the accreditation of halal conformity assessment bodies, and the appropriate mechanisms to control the marketing of halal products are important for the nationwide accreditation system in the Russian Federation. The regulatory framework in the sphere of halal accreditation is constantly developing; this allows the introduction of an accreditation scheme for halal certification bodies, refinement and unification of requirements with regard to numerous nuances in order to launch international cooperation with the countries where Russian halal products are exported. Specifically, an important aspect in the establishment of the halal quality infrastructure is to strengthen cooperation, the exchange of experience and best practices.

Head of the Federal Agency on Technical Regulating and Metrology Anton Shalaev spoke about various global practices in the standardization of halal products and services. He stressed that in Russia halal products and services have huge potential, including the export focus, and it is necessary to effectively use standardization and certification tools to develop this potential. “In 2017, at the Kazan Forum, it was resolved to set up a dedicated technical committee for halal standardization, and the first national standards appeared as a result. Halal is a unique sphere. We are at the beginning of the journey, a lot has been done, but yet much remains to be done.” The head of Rosstandart said. Standards with regard to sampling procedures and tourist services are in the pipeline. Anton Shalaev also told about the development of interstate standards and international cooperation with the Standards and Metrology Institute for the Islamic Countries (SMIIC) and the Organization for Standardization of the Gulf Cooperation Council.

Head of the Federal Accreditation Service Nazari Skrypnik emphasized the great potential of the halal product market, described the work performed to implement the halal accreditation scheme, and the consolidation of cooperation in this sphere with key international partners that is currently underway.

Chairman of the Committee on Industry and Trade of the State Duma Vladimir Gutenev said: “The Russian economy managed to reformat despite sanctions. A new vector in trade relations played a significant role in this process. The countries of the Arab world are an important driver. The prospects are greater than ever!”

Director General of the Accreditation Centre at the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf Moteb Almezani thanked for the opportunity to take part in the forum. “We believe that Russia’s close cooperation with Arab countries will continue to expand and yield fruitful results. For this, we have signed an agreement between the Accreditation Centre and Rosaccreditation,” Moteb Almezani said.

The head of the Autonomous Non-Profit Organization “Russian Quality System” Maksim Protasov said that the global market volume for halal products and services is 2 trillion US dollars. He noted that the market is growing, and the consumers are getting younger. In addition, halal products are increasingly consumed by the non-Muslim population. He also spoke about the organization’s participation in many high-profile projects.

Representatives of the accreditation bodies from the Gulf States, Malaysia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan reported about the national certification systems and shared their practice of establishing favourable conditions for the development of the halal industry.