Halal Retailing: Closing the Last Mile in an End-to-end Halal Supply Chain

In 2010, the Department of Standards Malaysia introduced the world’s first halal retailing standard: the “MS 2400-3:2010: management system requirements for retailing”. This halal retailing standard intends to provide assurance of the halal integrity of products, goods and/or cargo at the retail stage. It specifies the framework a retailer should establish to meet regulatory halal requirements. In the implementation of the standard, the retailer should address the handling and managing of halal products and/or goods whenever there exist interfacing activities during receiving, loading and delivery. However, this management system is not prescriptive (read: silent) as to how purchasing needs be organised, what categories of halal retailers are possible, the layout of retail outlets, and whether there should be segregation at retail outlets and in logistics. It also leaves out considerations of consumer preferences and how this halal retailing standard protects halal integrity according to Islamic thought, including fatwas and the local customs of Muslim societies.