The ASEAN Food and Beverage Alliance (AFBA) Executive Committee Holds Meetings with the ASEAN Secretariat and BPJPH

On November 22, 2018, the Executive Committee of the ASEAN Food and Beverage Alliance held meetings with the ASEAN Secretariat and the Halal Product Assurance Organizing Agency (Badan Penyelenggara Jaminan Produk Halal, BPJPH), held in conjunction with the AFBA Executive Committee meeting of November 21, 2018.

Engagement with the ASEAN Secretariat

Since the conceptualization of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), great efforts have been made to develop ASEAN instruments, paving the way for achieving harmonization. The ASEAN Secretariat plays a central role in coordinating trade facilitation efforts in the region.

Tan Lian Choo, Director of the Market Integration Directorate, and Ishaganee C. Elna, Assistant Director of the Standards and Conformance Division of the Market Integration Directorate, met with the AFBA Executive Committee to discuss shared concerns regarding regional trade facilitation.

As ASEAN moves toward the goals of the ASEAN Economic Community Blueprint 2025, the ASEAN Secretariat agreed that ASEAN needs to strengthen cooperation with the private sector. One of the key areas to be addressed is the different stages of development of ASEAN member states, which therefore requires capacity-building activities.

AFBA recently engaged with the ASEAN Consultative Committee for Standards and Quality Prepared Foodstuff Product Working Group (ACCSQ PFPWG), at which AFBA articulated the industry's concerns and received PFPWG's recognition of industry feedback. The recently announced new work by PFPWG on harmonizing nutrition labeling was especially welcomed.

In the spirit of mutual support, the ASEAN Secretariat made a proposal to AFBA to consider the needs of ASEAN member states, especially priority areas for providing technical assistance to the identified prepared foodstuff sector.

The ASEAN Secretariat encouraged AFBA to continue staying in touch with PFPWG and to share ASEAN's positive developments with member states. The ASEAN Secretariat further suggested holding a workshop during the upcoming PFPWG meeting. This allows more time to discuss resolving the concerns of the public and private sectors.

In addition to engagement at the regional level, engagement at the national level is crucial for building mutual trust among ASEAN stakeholders and facilitating the decision-making process of the ASEAN platform.

Engagement with the Halal Product Assurance Organizing Agency

The Halal Product Assurance Law No. 33 enacted in 2014 marked the transition of the Halal certification body from the Indonesian Ulema Council (Majelis Ulama Indonesia, MUI) to BPJPH. Although BPJPH has been officially established, it has not yet begun full operations.

The purpose of this engagement was to learn more about the development of Indonesia's new Halal law and to share the industry's views on the upcoming transformation. At the meeting, Prof. Ir. Sukoso, head of BPJPH, shared the progress of the Halal law's implementation. He affirmed that the Halal law will become the foundation of Indonesia's Halal framework. Article 4 stipulates that products entering, circulating in and traded within Indonesian territory must be Halal-certified. He noted that this must be read together with Article 26, which states:

(1) In accordance with Articles 18 and 20 of this law, operators producing products with raw materials derived from forbidden (haram) sources may not apply for Halal certification.

(2) The operators referred to in paragraph (1) must attach non-Halal information to the product.

Currently, for products that meet the criteria described in Article 26, BPJPH is cooperating with the Ministry of Religious Affairs to identify the appropriate mark and wording to be affixed to products.

The implementation of the Halal law will be carried out in several stages, starting with food. In addition, BPJPH is working with peers to develop positive lists, such as a list of additives, for reference by industry members.

As a government agency, BPJPH has been continuously working on government-to-government (G2G) cooperation to establish mutual recognition. This is carried out at two levels—ministerial agency and executive agency. BPJPH also participates in intergovernmental platforms, such as the religious ministers' association of Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore (MABIMS) and the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle (IMT-GT), to promote greater integration among member states.

Prof. Ir. Sukoso welcomed AFBA's support. He particularly mentioned the need to make capacity-building efforts to empower small and medium-sized enterprises. As a regional trade association connecting industry members of all sizes, AFBA is welcome to hold workshops domestically to enhance industry members' capabilities and understanding. In addition, AFBA, including industry members, is welcome to provide BPJPH with questions or concerns regarding the implementation of the new Halal law.