The first International Halal Programme Conference was held in Dubai, aiming to harmonize reliable conformity assessment standards in the Halal field.
The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is the United States' national standardization center and a globally recognized standardization accreditation body. It recently became a signatory to the International Halal Accreditation Forum (IHAF) international agreement (MoU). IHAF held the first International Halal Programme Conference in Dubai, aiming to harmonize reliable conformity assessment standards in the Halal field and to establish multilateral cooperation agreements among member bodies to promote the development of global Halal trade.
Reinaldo Figueiredo, ANSI's senior program director and ANSI's representative for product certification body accreditation, signed the international agreement with the following bodies: the National Accreditation Board for Certification Bodies, the Argentine Chamber of Commerce, the Mexican National Accreditation Council (Mexico), Italy's national accreditation body Accredia, and Thailand's Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives.
Halal products and services include food and beverages, cosmetics and personal care, pharmaceuticals, clothing, logistics, finance, tourism and hospitality, and more. From consumers, traders and manufacturers to governments, there is high demand for Halal products across all industries. Because of the continuous growth in product demand, Halal certification bodies will ensure the safety and transparency of the certification and verification of Halal products.