Halal Certification and Labelling Requirements and the TBT Regime: A Case Study of the Indonesian Halal Act 33/2014

In October 2014 Indonesia introduced the Halal Act, a legal instrument that aims at protecting Muslim consumers by requiring products to show mandatory information concerning their Halalness. The regulation is contentious as regards its compatibility with the WTO TBT Agreement, given the fact that its provisions are mandatory and that for a product to be considered Halal in Indonesia it must comply with the Fatwa issued by the Ulama Council of Indonesia. While the TBT Agreement acknowledges the right of WTO members to pass regulations that pursue legitimate objectives at the level they consider appropriate, at the same time it encourages members to do so in a way that does not create unnecessary obstacles to trade. This paper focuses on the issue of practice of religion and trade obstacles, exploring the latitude of WTO panels to adjudicate on such politically sensitive choices and the consequences of the lack of uniform international standards for trade in Halal products.