Halal Certification: A Viewpoint From Malaysian Restaurant Managers

Abstract

This study focuses on halal certification from the viewpoint of Malaysian restaurant managers. The increasing demand of halal food from the Muslim and non-Muslim consumers has given a good indicator to the hospitality industry to have the eating establishments halal certified. A sample of 643 restaurant managers has been selected throughout Malaysia using systematic sampling. Questionnaires were distributed using mail survey and data was then entered to SPSS version 21 for further analysis. It is gathered from the descriptive statistics that cleanliness during food preparation, meaning of halal and halal certification is important when dealing with food in a Malaysian restaurant setting. The results indicated that restaurant managers have high expectations toward halal certification. Furthermore, halal certification does generate some benefits beyond religion that contribute to Malaysia's positioning as a tourism destination and global halal hub.