International Experience in Standardization and Certification of Halal Products

Organiser: The Federal Agency on Technical Regulating and Metrology (Rosstandart)

Venue: International Exhibition Centre Kazan Expo, Kazan

Time: May 18, 2023, 10:00–11:20

Moderator: Anton Shalaev, Head of the Rosstandart

Speakers:

Dr. Haidar Hajjeh, Director General of the Palestine Standards Institution;

Dr. Farah Ali Al-Zarouni, Deputy Minister of Industry and Advanced Technologies of the UAE;

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

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

Ilham Bayramov, General Director of the Azerbaijan Standardization Institute;

Ruslan Ismailov, Member of the Management Board, Deputy General Director, Director of Magnit retail chain.

Halal is a promising direction for the development of the global economy. The annual turnover of the halal industry worldwide is in excess of $ 2 trillion, and in 2024 the market volume can reach $ 3.5 trillion. This market develops at an active pace, with the recent annual growth rate of at least 5%. It is expected that by 2025 the share of halal products will be at least 20% of the aggregate volume of global production. Under the current conditions in the Russian economy, the halal industry becomes the basis of international cooperation between Russia and the countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. Therefore, it is especially relevant to explore the international experience of halal product standardization and certification.

Head of the ANO “Russian Quality System” Maksim Protasov said: “The market for Halal products is ample and growing. Russia follows the way of establishing national standards and adopting international standards. Most importantly, producers shall refer to accredited bodies, while consumers must not be deceived, and their rights mustn’t be violated.”

The General Director of the Azerbaijan Standardization Institute Ilham Bayramov confirmed that Azerbaijan is interested in cooperation with Russia and the countries of the Islamic world in the sphere of halal product certification and standardization. According to him, eight national halal product certification standards were adopted in Azerbaijan last year, and two more are planned to be developed this year.

Deputy Minister of Industry and Advanced Technologies of the UAE Farah Ali Al-Zarouni stressed the necessity to observe the halal requirements along the whole chain of production and supplies. She noted that the UAE is very much open to import and export. At present, the majority of products are imported to the UAE from non-Muslim countries, and the UAE demonstrates interest in product import from Muslim countries, as well as the promotion of domestic products in the UAE and other Persian Gulf countries.

The Deputy General Director of the National Accreditation Centre of the Republic of Kazakhstan Absamat Akimov noted that more than 900 Kazakh producers have received halal accreditation, and spoke about the aspects and current situation with the halal system accreditation in the Republic of Kazakhstan.

The Director of Magnit retail chain Ruslan Ismailov noted that Magnit sells halal products in 7 regions, but the demand is growing throughout the country, including on the part of non-Muslim population. This holds true for food as well as cosmetics. Over 5 years, the growth of sales in this product category more than doubled.