Jabartoday.com-Jakarta. The government, through the Halal Product Assurance Agency (BPJPH) of the Ministry of Religious Affairs (Kemenag), in accordance with Law Number 33 of 2014 concerning Halal Product Assurance (JPH), mandates that products entering, circulating, and traded in Indonesia must be halal certified. This obligation is in line with Government Regulation Number 39 of 2021 concerning the Implementation of Halal Product Assurance, which stipulates a phased approach where the first phase of halal certification obligation will end on October 17, 2024.
Starting October 17, 2024, all products, especially food and beverages, slaughtering and its products, raw materials, food additives, and auxiliary materials for food and beverage products, must be halal certified. Failure to obtain halal certification by this date may result in sanctions according to applicable laws and regulations.
The Halal Certification Body (BPSH) of the Alumni Corps of the Islamic Students Association (KAHMI) was established considering that halal product certification is an obligation for Muslims in accordance with Islamic law to promote justice and welfare for society and to accelerate halal certification and strengthen the halal ecosystem. BPSH Kahmi aims to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of services, empower the economy, and leverage the benefits of Halal Certification to achieve the welfare of Muslims and contribute to the nation’s development.
In line with the statement by the Coordinator of the KAHMI Presidium, Ahmad Doli Kurnia Tanjung, during the National Leadership Meeting (Rapimnas) I KAHMI at Hotel Heritage (30/03/2024), emphasizing the commitment of KAHMI post-2024 elections to its religious and national commitments, BPSH Kahmi plays a vital role in realizing these commitments by providing tangible efforts in building institutions or bodies within KAHMI that contribute positively to Indonesia’s development.
“BPSH plays a crucial role given our potential network from regional to national levels, aligning with both societal interest and government initiatives to ensure comfort in various activities, making halal certification significant. For instance, in halal tourism sectors in predominantly non-Muslim areas like Balunge on the outskirts of Lake Toba. Despite this, almost every hotel there is labeled as ‘sharia-compliant,’ including the food. Why does this happen? It’s because there’s a growing awareness of the considerable number of Muslim tourists visiting. So, if they are not facilitated, it affects the economic-tourism sector there. I learned something new when I met the BPSH team; now, it’s possible for everyone to obtain halal certification. And institutions, as well as organizations, can also become certification bodies,” he stated.
Officially established through MN KAHMI Decree No. 25/SK/MN-KAHMI/XI/2023 on November 15, 2023, coinciding with 01 Jumadil Awal 1445 H, BPSH Kahmi has been accredited with Integrated Accreditation Standards through the “SiHalal” system from BPJPH of the Ministry of Religious Affairs with Registration No. 3403000002. Thus, businesses can now register their products for certification through the Halal Product Process Assistance Agency (LP3H) of BPSH Kahmi.
Led by Rudi Syahabuddin as the chairman, Burhanuddin M Zain as the secretary, and Elisa Sugito as the treasurer, BPSH Kahmi is an Auxiliary Element of the KAHMI National Assembly entrusted with implementing specific programs and activities supporting Halal Product Certification in line with the policies of the KAHMI National Assembly and BPJPH of the Ministry of Religious Affairs.
In line with this, the Chairman of BPSH Kahmi, Rudi Sahabuddin, stated in the presentation of the work program during the National Leadership Meeting (Rapimnas) I KAHMI that “BPSH Kahmi’s activities to be released on April 4-6 are warmly welcomed by the entire HMI and KAHMI family. From our expectations that the first wave of participants might only be 50-70 people, it turns out that the actual number has exceeded 600 participants, far beyond the maximum target. This indicates that BPSH Kahmi’s program is positively responded to by the entire HMI and KAHMI family nationwide, impacting both internally and externally, as KAHMI has gained a real position in contributing to religious and economic works.”
The upcoming agenda in BPSH Kahmi’s work program includes conducting recruitment for Halal Product Process Assistance (P3H) training, which will be held on April 4-6 nationally, with approximately 600 participants registered. This online event will provide theoretical and practical knowledge and skills training, benefiting entrepreneurs and actively contributing to strengthening the halal ecosystem and accelerating halal certification for individual and corporate productive businesses as well as in the service sector.
This significant progress didn’t happen overnight; BPSH Kahmi initiated its formulation through consultations with various stakeholders and symposiums, which are evidence of its journey towards optimizing the role and function of halal certification in Indonesia. [ruz]
