Certification from Islamic Foundation mandatory for halal products

Local production and marketing of halal or shariah-compliant products now require certification from the Bangladesh Islamic Foundation (BIF).

As per a policy issued by the Islamic Foundation recently, the producers and marketers of foods, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics items will have to obtain the certification and a halal logo from the foundation with a validity for one year.

After the end of the validity, the certification can be renewed following the policy.

Bangladesh Islamic Foundation, an organisation under the Ministry of Religious Affairs, drafted the rule in 2015. Recently, it formulated the first-ever policy after bringing necessary changes, according to local news portals.

As per the policy, the authorities will conduct inspections and verifications to ensure proper implementation of safety standards. A factory must be inspected once a year.

The annual fee for halal certification will be classified based on the size and capacity of the manufacturers and owners of food processing shops.

Tk 5,000 will be charged as the annual fee for the small factories that have investments of Tk 10 million to 50 million. The fee will be Tk 10,000 for the manufacturers having an investment of Tk 50 million to Tk 500 million.

The factories having investments of more than Tk 500 million will have to pay Tk 20,000 as the annual fee for halal certification.

Based on the capacity, slaughterhouses will pay Tk 5,000 to Tk 20,000 as the annual fee. The fee will be up to Tk 2,000 for hotels and restaurants.