The halal industrial cluster will be the first integrated zone and the largest in Indonesia, covering 500 hectares of land.
Serang (ANTARA) - The government will speed up the development of halal industrial estates (KIH), including the one established in the Cikande Modern Industrial Estate in Serang district, Banten, to boost Indonesia’s halal industry, the Industry Minister said.

The KIH ‘Halal Modern Valley’, which is being established in the Cikande Modern Industrial Estate, has been designed with systems and facilities to help develop the industry that produces halal products in accordance with Islamic principles, Agus Gumiwang Kartasasmita said.

"The halal industrial cluster will be the first integrated zone and the largest in Indonesia, covering 500 hectares of land," Kartasasmita stated during a working visit to Banten on Monday.

The Halal Modern Valley will include facilities for integrated industrial processes, a research and development center, food technology polytechnic, halal quality management system, sharia funding institution, port, and customs facilities, he noted.

The KIH will be developed by PT Modern Industrial Estate over five years in three stages, he informed.

"The first stage (of the construction) will cover an area of 150 hectares, 150 hectares (will be covered) in the second stage, and 200 hectares in the third stage," the minister elaborated.

The first stage of the construction began in October, 2019. Based on the master plan, the KIH will be developed into a halal industrial cluster as an ecosystem from upstream to downstream, including logistics, he added.

It is expected to become an international halal hub in Indonesia, he claimed.

Regarding the halal infrastructure, the KIH is working closely with the Halal Product Assurance Organizing Agency (BPJPH) and the Assessment Institute for Food, Drug and Cosmetics of the Indonesian Ulema Council (LPPOM-MUI) to develop and design halal industry integration at the estate.

The ministry has issued a halal industrial estate certificate for the Cikande Modern Industrial Estate on September 2, 2020.

It has also signed an agreement on establishing a global halal network with Cordoba Halal Park, Spain; Iskandar Halal Park, Johor, Malaysia; and, the Penang International Halal Hub Penang, Malaysia.

"In KIH Cikande, the government has encouraged large-scale industry to work in synergy with small and medium-scale industry," Kartasasmita said.

It has also prepared an e-commerce platform for the ecosystem at the Halal Modern Valley, in cooperation with the largest Muslim organization Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) and the Indonesian Food and Beverage Association (GAPMMI), he added.

Besides the KIH in Cikande, the ministry is also developing two other halal industrial estates — Safe n Lock Halal Industrial Park in Sidoarjo, East Java and Bintan Inti Halal Hub in Bintan district. (INE)

Related news: Indonesia aims to turn into global halal hub by 2024
Related news: Hope more Indonesian halal products enter global market: VP Amin

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Translator: Sella P Gareta, Sri Haryati
Editor: Suharto
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