The Promotional Language of the Halal Food Industry: Some Preliminary Findings

Abstract

The global halal food industry which is currently expanding exponentially presents a huge potential for Malaysia to make her mark in this business sector. In achieving its goal to become a global halal hub by 2020, emphasis should not merely be placed on the production of the halal food products but also on its promotional aspect. Hence, this paper will highlight some preliminary findings on the linguistic features of the promotional discourse of halal food. The research, which was based on textual-linguistic analysis, utilised corpus-based technique and discourse analysis to examine one hundred written materials on halal food. The study revealed the importance of creative interplay of interdiscursivity and intertextuality which was evidenced in the lexical and phrasal constructions, discursive structures and visual representations in marketing the halal food. The findings also showed that despite the strong demands for halal certification, some local manufacturers did not display any certifications for their food products. The study provides some suggestions in improving the promotion of halal food which include certification issue and, infusion of cultural and socio-religio elements. In short, this preliminary study shows the importance of utilising the most appropriate language in conveying the idea of ‘halal’ as prescribed in the Holy Quran especially in gaining the trust of the consumers.