Journal of Islamic Marketing

Emerald Article: Non-Muslim consumers' understanding of Halal principles

in Malaysia
Golnaz Rezai, Zainalabidin Mohamed, Mad Nasir Shamsudin

Article information:
To cite this document: Golnaz Rezai, Zainalabidin Mohamed, Mad Nasir Shamsudin, (2012),"Non-Muslim consumers' understanding of
Halal principles in Malaysia", Journal of Islamic Marketing, Vol. 3 Iss: 1 pp. 35 - 46
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Non-Muslim
Non-Muslim consumers’ understanding of
understanding of Halal principles Halal principles
in Malaysia
35
Golnaz Rezai, Zainalabidin Mohamed and Mad Nasir Shamsudin
Department of Agribusiness and Information Systems, Received 24 November 2010
Universiti Putra Malaysia, Selangor, Malaysia Accepted 31 March 2011

Abstract
Purpose – The aim of this paper is to determine the factors that most likely influence non-Muslims’
understanding of Halal principles in a country where almost 60 percent of the population is Muslim.
Design/methodology/approach – Cross-sectional data were collected through a survey of
800 non-Muslims in the Klang Valley, via structured questionnaires, to gather information on their
understanding of Halal principles and food products. The logit model was applied to determine the
extent to which socio environment factors influenced the respondents’ understanding and familiarities
with Halal principles and Halal food products.
Findings – The results of this study suggest that non-Muslim consumers are aware of the existence
of Halal food in Malaysia. In general, socio-environmental factors such as mixing with Muslims
socially and the presence of advertised Halal food significantly influence non-Muslims’ understanding
of Halal principles. The findings also suggest that non-Muslims understand that Halal principles are
also concerned about food safety issues and environmentally friendly ways of doing things.
Research limitations/implications – The research used a quantitative method to analyse
800 non-Muslim respondents in the Klang Valley only.
Practical implications – The practical implications extend to food policy decision makers and food
marketers who might pursue strategies in their distribution and communication efforts which target
the growing Halal food market segment among non-Muslims. Dissemination of information plays an
important role in making non-Muslims improve their understanding of Halal principles.
Originality/value – This study is one of the first to investigate the level of understanding of Halal
principles among non-Muslims in Malaysia.
Keywords Malaysia, Consumer behaviour, Information dissemination, Halal market, Non-Muslims,
Understanding, Halal principles, Attitudinal characteristics, Logit model
Paper type Research paper

1. Introduction
Halal means something which has been sanctioned by Islamic law. Concerning food,
this describes products which have been handled with a high level of hygiene, as well
as meeting a certain standard of cleanliness, safety and nutrition. In summary, the food
has been produced stringently under the requirements of the Islamic Dietary Law. As
people become more health-conscious, Halal principles are no longer confined to the
strictly religious but are becoming an appealingly healthy and hygienic cuisine style.
However, non-Muslim consumers still look at Halal food products from a religious
perspective and see it mainly as the way an animal has been slaughtered. Journal of Islamic Marketing
Vol. 3 No. 1, 2012
Halal accreditation is known for its beneficial characteristics which are not only to be pp. 35-46
enjoyed by Muslim consumers but also by non-Muslims. For example, Halal requirements q Emerald Group Publishing Limited
1759-0833
meet many of the conventional quality standards, such as ISO, Codex Alimentarius, DOI 10.1108/17590831211206572
JIMA Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point and Good Hygienic Practice. Additionally,
3,1 implementing Halal requirements will produce better quality products compared to those
that only implement the conventional standards (Talib and Ali, 2009). Therefore, Halal
values can be popularized among non-Muslim consumers if the society at large is made to
be more aware of issues concerning health, hygiene, safety, the environment, social justice
and animal welfare that comes along with the Halal ways of doing things.
36 The Malaysian Industrial Development Authority and the Department of Islamic
Development of Malaysia ( JAKIM) have so far issued 424 Halal certificates to 424 food
manufacturers, investing a total of RM5.9 billion. The process of Halal certification
conducted by JAKIM is quite lengthy so as to ensure the Halaness of the manufactured
food. It includes the inspection of the premises, workers, raw materials and ingredients
used in the manufacturing of the food products. The manufactured food products that
meet the requirements are endorsed by JAKIM with its certified Halal logo. These
endorsed products are recognized as meeting Islamic standards so Muslims can
consume such products without any doubt concerning its Halalness. Such licensing
standards have made Halal principles popular among non-Muslim food manufacturers
because of the wider market potential to export such products to other Muslim
countries (Ariff, 2004). However, due to a lack of knowledge among non-Muslims on
Halal principles and insufficient information on the benefits of the Halal process, Halal
principles have not become a major element in the fabric of non-Muslims lives. Thus,
this paper assesses how well do non-Muslims living in an Islamic country really
understand Halal principles?
In a multi-racial and culturally diverse society it is imperative for non-Muslims to
understand the cultural and religious taboos of their Muslim counterparts. This includes
understanding Halal principles which is important even though it may not be part of non
Muslims daily life concerns. Thus, this study explores the underlying factors that are
most likely to have some influence in helping non-Muslims understand these novel
principles of Halal issues in the context of sustainability, religion and society.

2. Literature review
In general, consumers’ understanding and familiarity with food are determined by
individual and environmental factors, such as marketing, information, situation and
food specific properties (Connor, 1988). This study attempts to look at one particular
factor, namely the role Halal principles play in shaping consumption decisions by the
non-Muslim. Ample evidence has been provided showing that religion influences
consumer attitudes and behavior in general (Pettinger et al., 2004), as well as food
purchasing decisions and eating habits (Blackwell et al., 2001). In many societies,
religion is in fact one of the most influential roles in food choice (Dindyal, 2003). However,
given the new paradigm shift which stresses the importance of a green supply chain,
Halal principles are no longer just the Muslim practice of slaughtering their animals but
it also encompasses such issues as sustainability, environmental friendliness, food
safety and care for animal welfare. Thus, for Muslims the Halal standard indicates the
Halalness of the products and for non-Muslims it stands for not only just and fair
business transactions but also for caring for animals, the environment, sustainability,
social justice and animal welfare.
According to the Agri-Food Trade Service, Global Halal Food Market Brief (2008),
there is a strong demand for Halal products in a number of non-Muslim countries for
both groups of consumers. Halal products are also growing in popularity among Non-Muslim
non-Muslim consumers due to humane animal treatment concerns and the perception understanding of
that Halal products are healthier and safer. Moreover, Islamic Food and Nutrition
Council of America ’s (2009) latest report in March 2009, stated that the focus on food Halal principles
being wholesome also creates a strong opportunity to market Halal food as a lifestyle
choice; the new “organic product”, especially in the USA and Europe where consumers
already pay premium prices for organic foods. Many non-Muslims have already chosen 37
to eat Halal food because of the perception that it is a healthy choice. It is expected that
in the next five years, the consumption of Halal food will increase among the
health-conscious markets.
The Malaysian Standard on Halal Food (MS 1500:2004) complies with the
international standards of Good Manufacturing Practices and Good Hygiene Practices
and prescribes practical guidelines for the food industry on the preparation and
handling of Halal food (including nutrient supplements) based on quality, sanitary
and safety considerations and serves as a basic requirement for food products and food
trade or business in Malaysia. Halal principles have now become a universal concept.
It is no longer a concept confined or restricted to the slaughtering of animals for the
consumption of Muslims but also encompasses products and services of the highest
quality that meet the ever increasing awareness and needs of non-Muslim consumers.
Malaysia is a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural and multilingual society. The population
as of 2010 (forecasted) is 27.6 million, 62 percent of which consist of Malays who are
Muslim, 24 percent are Chinese who are mainly Buddhist or practitioners of traditional
Chinese religions, 8 percent are Indians who are mainly Hindu[1] and the remaining
population consists of other minorities and indigenous groups (Department of
Statistics Malaysia, 2007). In the case of Halal food and non-Muslim consumers in
Malaysia, some of the questions that need to be resolved are as follows:
.
to what extent are non-Muslim consumers familiar with Halal principles; and
.
what are the predominant determinants that may influence non-Muslim
consumers’ awareness and understanding of Halal principles and Halal food
products?

Given the questions above, this study intends to assess and explore the underlying
determinants that are likely to influence non-Muslim consumers’ familiarity and
understanding of Halal principles and the likelihood of them demanding Halal food
products in the future.

3. Methodology
3.1 Sample
In total, 800 non-Muslim respondents, randomly sampled, were interviewed via
structured questionnaires in order to gauge their concerns and understanding about
the Halal principles pertaining to food products. The respondents were selected
randomly at several supermarkets such as Carrefour, Coldstorage, Giant, Tesco,
Ecosave and Jusco, which were all located around the Klang Valley area. Supermarkets
were chosen because most manufactured food products are widely available there and
consumers from different walks of life do their shopping at them. The questionnaire
was divided into two sections. The first part of the questionnaire included items
measuring consumers’ concerns and awareness about Halal principles.
JIMA Since purchasing Halal foods cannot be considered to be an expression of the
3,1 consumer’s religious obligations for non-Muslims, we therefore stressed the benefits of
Halal food principles within other contexts such as food safety, environmental
friendliness and animal welfare. Their understanding and awareness about Halal
principles were measured on a five-point attitudinal scale (on a scale of 1-5) ranging
from “strongly disagree” to “strongly agree”. Finally, relevant socio-demographics
38 such as age, gender, area of residence, level of education, occupation, marital status,
level of religiosity and how often they mix with Muslims socially or in the working
place were also recorded.
The definitions of the socio-economic/demographic variables and descriptive
statistics of the sample are presented in Table I. The binary logit model was applied to
determine the underlying factors that are likely to influence the understanding and
familiarity of non-Muslim towards Halal principles. Both socio-economic/demographic
and attitudinal variables are used as explanatory variables in determining the
underlying factors.

3.2 Model specification

As indicated earlier, a logit model was employed in this study because of its ability to
represent the complex aspects of the decisions made by individuals. This is the case when
the dependent variables are binary discrete variables in nature. The logit model is also able
to incorporate important demographic and other explanatory variables (a detailed
discussion on the theoretical framework of the logit model can be found in McFadden, 1981).

Variables Design value (coding system)

Residential area 0. Suburban

1. Urban
Gender 0. Female
1. Male
Age 0. Below 40
1. Above 40
Marital status 0. Single
1. Married
Education level 0. Secondary school
1. Tertiary
Level of religiosity 0. Lower religious belief
1. Higher religious belief
Mixing with Muslim in society 0. Sometime/never
1. Always/often
Mixing with Muslim at the working place 0. Sometime/never
1. Always/often
Food safety 0. Not concerned about food safety
Table I. 1. Concerned about food safety
Explanatory variables Environmentally friendly 0. Not concerned about environmentally friendly
measuring non-Muslim 1. Concerned about environmentally friendly
consumers’ Animal welfare 0. Not concerned about animal welfare
understanding of Halal 1. concerned about animal welfare
principles on food Advertisement 0. Not agree with role of advertisement in awareness
products 1. Agree with role of advertisement in awareness
In our case, we would like to determine the factors that are likely to influence the Non-Muslim
understanding and awareness of Halal principles among non-Muslim consumers. understanding of
The results of this study are interpreted using the odds ratio, which is the
exponentiated coefficient of the explanatory variables. The odds ratio is calculated by Halal principles
contrasting each category with the reference category. The odds ratio shows a
multiplicative change in the odds for a unit change in an independent variable. The general
binary logit model can be stated as: 39
 
P
log ¼ xb ð1Þ
12P
where: xß is a vector of independent variables X and ß is the estimated parameters.
[P/1 2 P] is called the odds ratio and thus is referred to as the log of odds. The logistic
coefficient is interpreted as the change in the logit associated with a one unit change in
the independent variable, holding all other variables constant. The exponential of the
logistic coefficient is the effects on the odds rather than the probability. It is interpreted
as follows. That is, for a one unit change in the independent variable; the odds are
expected to change by a factor of exp(ß) when other things are equal.
For this study, the dependent variable represents Malaysian non-Muslim
consumers’ understanding and familiarity with Halal principles. The variable is
coded as 1 if the consumers understand and are familiar with Halal principles on Halal
manufactured food products and is coded as zero if otherwise. Independent variables in
this choice model represent the factors that may have influences on consumers’ choice
behavior. The independent variables are: age, gender, level of education, level of
religiosity, area and how often they mix with Muslims socially or in the work place, as
well as other attitudinal characteristics with regard to the understanding and
familiarity of Halal principles. The independent variables included in the model depend
on the extent of detail we have in our data collection and the significance of the
variables in explaining choice behavior. The specific equation of the logit model is
shown in equation (2) below:

log itðModel Þ ¼ b0 þ b1 xarea þ b2 xGender þ b3 xAge þ b4 xMarital Status þ b5 xEducatio Level

þ b6 xreliogiousityl þ b7 xsocialy mixing þ b8 xprofessional mixingðworkÞ
þ b9 xFood Safety þ b10 xEnvironmentally Friendly þ b11 xAnimal Welfare
þ b12 xAdvertisement þ 1i
ð2Þ
where:
ß0 – constant.
ß1 – coefficient of xi.
Thus, the independent variables represent the different attributes affecting the
representative consumers’ understanding and familiarity with Halal principles of Halal
food products. The independent variables are also coded into two categories (0 and 1).
A summary of independent variables included in the model and their coding systems
are presented in Table I.
JIMA 4. Results and discussion
3,1 4.1 Descriptive analysis
Table II shows the characteristics of the sample with regard to their
socio-economic/demographic backgrounds. About two-thirds of the respondents are
from urban areas and one-third is from suburban areas. More than 50 percent

40 Characteristics Number Percentage

Residential area
Urban 564 70.5
Suburb 236 29.5
Gender
Female 412 51.5
Male 388 48.5
Religion
Christian 252 31.5
Buddhist 316 39.5
Hindu 232 29.0
Ethnic
Chinese 416 52.0
Indian 328 41.0
Others 56 7.0
Education level
Never been to school 12 1.5
Primary school 20 2.5
Secondary school 164 20.5
Tertiary 604 75.5
Marital status
Single 332 41.5
Married 468 58.5
Occupation
Government service 64 8.0
Privet sector 560 70.0
Self-employed 84 10.5
Unemployment 12 1.5
Student 48 6.0
Others 32 4.0
Age
Below 25 88 11.0
26-40 432 54.0
41-60 272 34.0
Above 60 4 1.0
Income
Below RM1,500 124 15.5
RM1,501-RM3,000 368 46.0
RM3,001-RM4,500 156 19.5
RM4,501-RM6,000 84 10.5
Above 6,000 68 8.5
Level of religiosity
Very religious 88 11.0
Table II. Religious 420 52.5
Demographic profile Somewhat religious 244 30.5
of respondents Not religious 48 6.0
of the respondents are female. Among the respondents, more than half of the Non-Muslim
respondents are Chinese (52.0 percent) followed by Indians at 41.0 percent and others understanding of
represent the remaining 7.0 percent. For religion, the compositions are as follows:
Christians (31.5 percent), Buddhists (39.5 percent) and Hindus (29.0 percent). Most of the Halal principles
respondents are married (58.5 percent) as compared to single (36.5 percent) and widows
(5.0 percent). The majority of the respondents interviewed are between 26 and 40 years of
age (54.0 percent) and most of them (75.5 percent) are educated at the tertiary level. The 41
occupations of the respondents are categorized into five levels. The majority of the
respondents either work in the governmental sector (8.0 percent), private sector
(70.0 percent), or are self-employed (10.5 percent). The remaining respondents were
either student (6.0 percent) or were made up of retirees, those who were unemployed and
housewives (5.5 percent). In terms of income distribution, the study found that at least
46.0 percent of the respondents have an income between RM1,501 and 3,000 per month.
While about 15.5 percent of the respondents earn less than RM1,500, a smaller
percentage of the respondents (8.5 percent) have a monthly income above RM6,000.
In this survey, 11 percent of those surveyed identified themselves as very religious,
52.5 percent claimed to be religious and 30.5 percent described themselves as somewhat
religious. Only 6 percent of the respondents claimed not to be religious. It is interesting to
note how the respondents’ level of religiosity in their respective religious beliefs effect
non-Muslims understanding and familiarity with Halal principles.
The relationship between the consumers’ familiarity with Halal principles and their
attitudes are also measured by a descriptive analysis and are shown in Table III.

Characteristics Number Percentage

Being aware of the existence of Halal food

Yes 604 75.5
No 196 24.5
Understanding the concept of Halal principles
Fully understand 76 9.5
Understand 244 30.5
Somewhat understand 424 53.0
Do not understand 56 7.0
Advertisements on Halal food will make me more aware of the Halal principles
Strongly agree 228 28.5
Agree 404 50.5
Neutral 88 11.0
Disagree 48 6.0
Strongly disagree 32 4.0
Mixing with Muslims socially
Always 76 9.5
Often 408 51.0
Sometimes 280 35.0 Table III.
Never 36 4.5 Consumers’
Mixing with Muslims in the work place understanding with
Always 124 15.5 regards to Halal
Often 296 37.0 principles and societal
Sometimes 344 43.0 attitudinal characteristics
Never 36 4.5 of respondents
JIMA Approximately 75.5 percent of the consumers in this study claim that they are aware of
3,1 the existence of Halal foods in the market. The respondents’ understanding of Halal
principles provides an insight into Malaysian non-Muslim consumers’ attitudes toward
Halal products. A good understanding indicates that the non-Muslims understand that
their Muslim counterparts require their food to be Halal before it can be consumed.
At least 40 percent of the respondents understand the importance of Halal principles in
42 terms of food preparation for Muslims. The majority of the respondents (53.0 percent)
indicated that they somewhat understand the principles of Halal food and a small
percentage of about 7.0 percent do not have any idea of what Halal principles are about.
The result also shows that about 9.5 percent of the respondents state that they fully
understand and familiar with Halal principles. In the total sample, 79.0 percent of the
respondents agree with the role of advertisement in raising the awareness of Halal
principles. The frequency analysis results of non-Muslims’ socialising with Muslims
indicate that only 60.5 percent of the respondents mix with Muslims socially quite often,
meanwhile this decreases to 52.5 percent when it comes to socialising in the work place.
Another step toward determining the understanding and familiarity of Halal
principles among non-Muslims is to find how much they are concerned about the
current issues on religious obligations, food safety, environmental friendliness and
animal welfare. Table IV shows the respondents’ opinion on to what extent those
stated issues are considered to be important. By referring to the mean, the overall
majority of the respondents are concerned about religious obligation issues (4.63) and
food safety aspects (4.37). The result also shows that most of the respondents are
concerned about environmentally friendly issues (4.18). Interestingly the animal
welfare issue has the lowest mean that might indicate that the respondents might not
be that familiar with the animal welfare issues especially with regards to the Islamic
way slaughtering animals (3.53).

4.2 Results of binary logit model

The binary logit analysis was used to determine the likelihood of understanding and
being familiar with Halal principles among non-Muslims. Table V shows the estimated
results from the logit regression. In this study the attitudinal independent variables that
can influence and affect consumers’ understanding and familiarity of Halal principles
are as follows; the respondents’ opinion on issues like food safety, environmental
friendliness, religious obligation, animal welfare and the role of advertisements in
influencing the understanding of the Halal principles. Besides the above said variables,
selected socioeconomic factors were also included in the binary logit model to estimate
the likelihood of increasing the respondents’ understanding and familiarity of Halal

Not very Not Very

concerned concerned Neutral Concerned concerned
Table IV. Statement 1 2 3 4 5 Mean
Respondents’ concerned
with environmental and Religious obligation 0.81 0.48 4.52 22.31 71.88 4.63
sustainability issues in Food safety 0.32 1.5 8.22 40.82 49.14 4.37
relation to Halal Environmentally friendly 0.81 3.82 24.41 23.54 47.42 4.18
principles Animal welfare 1.93 7.15 34.14 39.68 17.1 3.53
 Non-Muslim
Estimated
Variables coefficients SE Ratio p-value understanding of
Food safety 0.5900 * * * 0.1508 1.80 0.0001
Halal principles
Advertisements’ role 0.8931 * * * 0.38163 2.44 0.0193
Environmentally friendly 0.6924 * * 0.3776 1.99 0.0667
Animal welfare 0.2436 0.1958 1.27 0.2135 43
Mixing with Muslims socially 0.5223 * * * 0.1825 1.68 0.0042
Mixing with Muslims at working place 0.3048 0.2228 1.35 0.1713
Level of religiosity 0.1741 * * * 0.0449 1.19 0.0001
Area 0.4737 0.3151 1.60 0.1328
Age 2 0.924986 * * * 0.4717 0.39 0.0499
Gender 2 0.0234 0.2028 0.97 0.9081
Education level 0.4739 * 0.2791 1.60 0.0896
Marital status 0.0095 0.3497 1.00 0.9782
C 2 0.8975 2.3230 0.407 0.6992
McFadden R 2 0.2189 Log likelihood 2108.0016
SD dependent var 0.5003 Restr. log 2138.2692
likelihood Table V.
p-value for the goodness of fit test 0.0000 Avg. log 20.5400 Estimates of logit model
likelihood for non-Muslims
understanding of Halal
Note: Statistically significant at: *0.10, * *0.05, and * * * 0.01 levels principles

principles (Table V). These included the respondents’ gender, education, level of
religiosity, marital status and how often they mixed with Muslims socially.
Taking into account only the statistically significant coefficients, the respondents
who are concerned with food safety issues are 1.80 times more likely than those who are
not concerned about food safety to understand and be familiar with Halal principles. The
result also indicates that we can highlight the role played by advertisements in
promoting Halal principles on food products. Thus, those respondents who are aware of
such advertisement are 2.4 times more likely to understand Halal principles than
respondents who are not aware of such advertisements. The estimated coefficient for
environmental friendliness is positive and significant at the 90 percent confidence
interval. Thus, individuals who are concerned about environmentally friendly issues
such as sustainability, conservation and green concepts on agriculture are twice as likely
(1.99) to understand and be familiar with Halal principles because they are in line with
global environmental issues.
The coefficient on mixing with Muslims socially is significant at the 99.0 percent
significance level. Thus, non-Muslims who are socially involved with their Muslim
counterparts are 1.6 times more likely to understand and be familiar with Halal
principles. The estimated coefficient for level of religiosity is positive and significant at
the 90 percent significant level. This shows that a high positive effect will emerge when
a non-Muslim’s religious level increases. The interpretation of this is that as the level of
religiosity increases, the likelihood of the respondent understands of Halal principles
increases 1.2 times compared to those who have a low level of religiosity. The
significant and negative sign for the variable; age, which has been classified into two
groups (40 years and above – older; less than 40 years – younger), shows that the
older group of respondents were less likely to understand and be familiar with Halal
JIMA principles compared to their younger counterparts. This could be due to differences in
3,1 educational systems. Certainly for the younger generation, more emphasis has been
placed on the integration of ethnic groups at school. Thus, the older generation seems
to be less aware of Halal principles and is also less likely to have mixed with Muslim
students during their schooling years. The education level on the other hand is one of
the most important factors related to non-Muslims being familiar with Halal principles.
44 The higher the level of education, the more likely the individual is to understand Halal
principles compared to those who have not gained a tertiary education level. Hence, as
non-Muslim consumers become more educated, they are more likely to be familiar with
Halal principles as shown by the positive effect and significance of this variable
(Table V). This group of respondents is 1.6 times more likely to understand Halal
principles and is significant at the 90 percent significant level. Other variables such as
gender, place of residence, marital status, the concept of animal welfare and
surprisingly how often the respondents mix with Muslims in the work place are not
significant in explaining the respondents’ understanding and familiarity with Halal
principles.

5. Discussion and conclusions

In a multi racial and culturally diverse society, understanding the needs of each culture
is very important so as to promote a harmonious and tolerant society. The most
sensitive issues, especially among the Muslims, are about the preparation of their food.
For this reason it is important for the Malaysian non-Muslims to understand and be
familiar with Halal principles. This should not only be from the perspective of the
slaughtering of animals or the prohibition of alcohol food items but also from the
perspective of sustainability. This should be promoted through encouraging
non-Muslims to socially interact with Muslims as well as supporting other factor
that might improve non-Muslims’ understanding and familiarity with Halal principles.
The result of the study shows that at least 75.5 and 79 percent of the respondents
are aware of the existence of Halal principles and have improved their awareness of
Halal principles via advertisements. By the same token, only 40 percent of the
respondents really understand the Halal principle concept. Being aware of Halal
principles does not mean that non Muslims really understand what Halal principles are
all about (Table III). At least 94 percent agreed that the Halal principle is a religious
obligation, while 90 and 71 percent agreed that Halal principles are concerned with
food safety and environmental friendliness, respectively. However, the non-Muslims
did not think that the Halal concept is fully concerned with animal welfare (Table IV).
This could be due to the perception of some people who feel that the Halal procedure of
animal slaughtering is inhuman. Many allegations have been made stating that Islamic
slaughtering procedures do not treat animals in a humane way. However, some
arguments indicate that the Islamic way of slaughtering is one of the best ways of
ensuring the animal does not suffer. Schulze and Hazim (2001) proved through an
experiment, using an electro encephalograph and electrocardiogram (ECG) that the
Islamic way of slaughtering is a more humane method of slaughtering as it causes less
pain compared to captive bolt stunning.
Surprisingly, food safety issues and environmental friendliness are associated with
Halal principles according to the non-Muslims. These issues are very crucial in the
sense that the world is moving towards promoting a greener environment and Halal
food provides a platform for consumers to make a choice in deciding to purchase food Non-Muslim
items that are more favourable towards promoting a greener environment. We can understanding of
conclude that in general, non-Muslim consumers are familiar with the Halal principles
of food products in the market. Advertisements for Halal food need to stress not only Halal principles
the benefits from a religious point of view but also from the other benefits that favour
food safety, wholesomeness, hygiene and also caring for the animal and environment.
The Muslim counterpart has a role to play in promoting and making their non-Muslim 45
friends understand the importance of Halal principles for Muslims.
Although non-Muslims seem to understand the Halal principle with regards to
sustainability issues and fulfilling religious obligations, the dissemination of
information with regards to Halal principles must be continued. The importance of
the Halaness of food products to the Muslim communities has to be highlighted to the
non-Muslims so that they can understand and become more familiar with the strict
requirements in preparing Halal food for Muslims. Education can play a very
important role in making non-Muslim people better understand the Halal principles
which can begin in the very early days of their schooling. The younger generation
seems to be more aware of the importance of healthy and sustainable lifestyles. Halal
food can help in this endeavor. As a multi-ethnic nation with many different religious
backgrounds, the implementation of Halal principles on all food manufactures and food
providers is a win-win situation to both Muslim and non-Muslims in this country.
Similarly, to the non Muslim food manufactures and producers, the production of Halal
food products is a must in a Muslim country, especially considering the Malaysian
Government’s vision of making Malaysia a world Halal hub for food production and
manufacturing. It will not only benefit Muslim consumers but will also build
confidence among Muslim countries such as the Organization of Islamic Country (OIC)
members in purchasing Halal products from Malaysia. Since Malaysia has a reputation
of being one of the most developed Muslim countries among the OIC members and as a
Haven for Halal food it is crucial that Malaysian manufactures and producers grab
onto this golden opportunity and expand their business.

Note
1. The Chinese and Indians are referred to as non-Muslims in this paper.

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Corresponding author
Zainalabidin Mohamed can be contacted at: zam@agri.upm.edu.my

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