Indonesia-New Zealand Discuss Cooperation on Halal Meat Supply

Wellington, MINA – Indonesian Deputy Minister of Religion Zainut Tauhid Sa’adi held a meeting with New Zealand’s Minister of Agriculture Hon Damien O’Connor, in Wellington recently discussing cooperation on halal product assurance (JPH), one of which is related to meat supply lawful.

“New Zealand is one of the countries that supply halal meat. As a country with a majority Muslim population, the supply of halal meat is of course a necessity for Indonesia,” said the Deputy Minister of Religion.

“Many of the professional Halal Slaughterers (Juleha) in New Zealand also come from Indonesia. Hopefully later we can send more butchers to New Zealand,” added Zainut Tauhid.

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The Deputy Minister of Religion hopes that the cooperation on halal product guarantees that is carried out can provide benefits for the two countries.

“We hope that this cooperation and partnership will be based on the principles of mutual benefit and respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of each country,” said the Deputy Minister of Religion.

During the working visit which took place from 2 to 6 December 2022, the BPJPH Assessor Team also conducted an assessment of three halal institutions in New Zealand, namely the Halal Conformity Service (HCS), New Zealand Islamic Development Trust (NZIDT), and The Federation of Islamic Association of New Zealand (FIANZ).

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“The assessment was carried out to provide mutual recognition and acceptance of halal products in the two countries,” said the Deputy Minister of Religion.

Meanwhile, the Head of the Halal Product Assurance Organizing Agency (BPJPH) Muhammad Aqil Irham who participated in the deputy minister’s delegation said that this assessment process was important to carry out to ensure that the standards used by New Zealand halal institutions were the same as Indonesia.

“If there is already an institution that meets Indonesian requirements and standards regarding guarantees for halal products, export business partners from New Zealand don’t have to bother certifying their products as halal and can enter the Indonesian market,” explained Aqil.

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Apart from that, the BPJPH Team also had the opportunity to visit one of the largest meat producers in New Zealand, namely Silver Fern Farms.

“We are there to see whether the company also applies halal standards as set by BPJPH regarding New Zealand products that will be exported to Indonesia,” said Aqil. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)