REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Visiting the offices of the Halal Product Assurance Organizing Agency (BPJPH), Reverend Gilbert Lumoindong stated that halal or the guarantee of the purity of a product is a form of convenience for all. He insists that halal is not a threat.
“I think halal should not be scary because halal is for everyone, so it is not scary for many people, so halal does not mean Islamization, it has nothing to do with food (products),” Pastor Gilbert said at the BPJPH office on Tuesday (17/12/2024).
Reverend Gilbert insists that kosher is not a threat. So if Babe Haikal Hasan as Head of BPJPH pushes halal, it is not a threat but it is comfort. Because it's kosher for everyone.
Reverend Gilbert further explained that if anyone assumes kosher to be a threat then it is mistaken. Because halal has become a standard product related to hygiene and health that is used by everyone, not just for Muslims.
“I don't think halal should be scary because kosher is for everyone. So it's not scary for a lot of people. So if, uh, this (halal) means Islamization, it doesn't. It's not about food, it's about food. The kosher, the first is related to its hygiene, its health, the process. The process is expected to be as healthy, as best as possible,” explained Reverend Gilbert.
The head of BPJPH, Babe Haikal Hasan who received Reverend Gilbert's visit expressed great pleasure over the visit of the Protestant Christian Pastor to the BPJPH office.
“This morning I had a wonderful guest honor. So he came to BPJPH to see how this is a halal process,” said Babe Haikal.
“So input from Pastor, halal is clean, halal is process, halal is not for Muslims only, halal id for everybody, halal is healthy. Yes, like what I said, kosher is modern civilization.” said Babe Haikal.
Furthermore, Babe Haikal also appealed to business operators across Indonesia to take care of halal certification of their products. Because, in addition to being a form of compliance with the applicable regulations, halal certification is also part of the prime service of business operators in providing products that are guaranteed to be clean, whether in the form of goods or services.
In addition, by being certified halal, the products will have added value economically and are increasingly able to compete in the market.