ONE wonders if a viral clip on TikTok informing Muslims that the flour range which comes under the “Bestari” brand “is a non-Muslim product” is insinuating that the halal accreditation by the Malaysian Islamic Development Department (JAKIM) is not trustworthy or it is just a ploy to encourage Malay Muslims to buy Bumiputera-made products.
The latter cannot be discounted given the social media post displayed in the video bears the account name of Buy Muslim First Mart and subtly stated that “the Bestari flour which range which has gene viral in social media as well as used by a majority of Muslims in Malaysia is produced by non-Muslim”.
What is especially intriguing is that the clip really struck the cord as it was accompanied by the festive hit song Alamak Raya Lagi by the girl group De Fam which cast further doubts in Muslim consumers given the slang Alamak is often equated as “Oh My God”.
True enough, a check by FocusM found that the flour distributed by Telok Panglima Garang-based Bestari Sales & Marketing Sdn Bhd which goes by the motto Mudah dan Sedap (literally, “Simple and Tasty”) is produced by a non-Muslim company.
But that did not discount the fact that its factories adhere to strict food safety guidelines and have proudly obtained HACCP, ISO 22000 and JAKIM halal certifications.
But obviously, a decent amount of damage has been inflicted by the TikTok video to both the reputation of Bestari and JAKIM even as some sensible Muslim consumers remain convinced that “so long as there’s JAKIM-accredited halal accreditation, it doesn’t matter if the product is manufactured by non-Muslim”.
Worst still, some commenters even suggested that JAKIM’s halal certification can no longer be trusted.
Thankfully, one commenter cast aside the doubt cast by some consumers by citing his mother who said that “so long as there is JAKIM’s halal logo, it’s fine even if the product is manufactured by non-Muslims”.
Other like-minded consumers make comparison by alluding to non-Muslim Alagappa’s range of spices and Lingham’s chilli sauce which also possess valid halal certification.
To cut a long story short, the key motive of the poster was to woo Muslims to support Bumiputera-made flour range which may be overlooked by consumers due to the more aggressive marketing campaign by the so-called non-Muslim producers.
But in so doing, JAKIM found the credibility of its halal certification comprised when Muslims themselves questioned the authenticity of its halal accreditation when they should by right be defending JAKIM’s efforts to issue more halal certification especially t0 non-Muslims players in the food-related industry. – Oct 23, 2024
