Abstract

In 2025, approximately 2 billion of muslim worldwide choose to consume halal food that are served with highest standard of hygiene and quality. ASEAN muslim majority countries such Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia have seen halal as part of golden opportunities in venturing into halal hub business aiming to develop countries and diverse its economic sources. The value of possessing and getting halal certificate can boost a product's marketability, especially in halal food manufacturing industry. Application of halal certification processes are smooth and not hard if handled by competent Halal Executives that have great understanding of requirements outlined in halal guidelines and standards as its role of halal executives is to manage the halal company, prepare documents for halal certificate application, monitor the manufacturing process and provide training to all workers involved in the product manufacturing. However, the gap of this research is that halal executives in both countries have faced problems in terms of regulatory disparities that create inconsistencies in the way halal food manufacturing standards are interpreted and enforced, leading to variations in the perception and execution of responsibilities among halal executives. This study explores the key operational challenges faced by halal executives in ensuring compliance with halal certification standards in the halal food manufacturing sectors of Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia. The first objective is to analyse the practical difficulties encountered by halal executives during the implementation of halal standards, including inconsistent perceptions of certification processes, inadequate training, limited awareness, and coordination issues with regulatory bodies. The second objective focuses on how differences in national regulatory frameworks and human resource capacities influence the roles, challenges, and overall performance of halal executives in both countries. Lastly, the study examines emerging opportunities alongside these challenges, with attention to how national contexts shape the strategies employed by executives to maintain halal compliance. Based on these insights, the research proposes practical recommendations aimed at enhancing executive competencies and supporting the sustainable growth of the halal food industry. To address this gap, qualitative research has been employed with data collected from existing research papers. The research questions are developed through a literature review, which identifies the main issues related to halal executive or supervisors in both Brunei Darussalam and Malaysia. The research findings point to three challenges: complex certification procedures, coordination of authorities, lack of awareness, training and another three opportunities: standardization, leadership and innovation, strengthening industry with government collaboration, capacity building and talent development. These study findings aim to examine challenges faced by halal executives while practice recommendations at improving halal compliances by enhancing halal executive capabilities and leverage halal food industry's growth potential.


Keywords : Halal executive, Halal certification, Halal food manufacturing, Regulatory Framework and Operational Challenges