THE 21st Meeting of the ASE­AN Working Group on Halal Food, hosted by Myanmar, was held virtually at 8:30 am yesterday.

The meeting was attend­ed by representatives from ASEAN member countries and the ASEAN Secretari­at; the Director-General of the Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Irrigation; officials from the Planning Department; and represent­atives from the Veterinary and Slaughterhouse Depart­ments of the Development Committees in Nay Pyi Taw and Yangon.

At the opening ceremo­ny, Dr Toe Min Tun, Direc­tor-General of the Livestock Breeding and Veterinary De­partment, served as chair­man and delivered a welcom­ing speech.

At the meeting, ASEAN member countries discussed and agreed on the ASEAN Halal Food Cooperation Ac­tion Plan (2021–2025), in­cluding the progress of the project proposal on issuing ASEAN-level halal food certi­fication, the official accredita­tion scheme, the registration of flavoring agents in halal food, the establishment of the ASEAN Halal Food website, and the general guidelines for ASEAN Halal Food.

The ASEAN Working Group on Halal Food was es­tablished in 2000 under the ASEAN Ministers of Agricul­ture and Forestry Meeting (AMAF) to promote the de­velopment and cooperation of the halal food industry within ASEAN. The working group meetings are hosted annually by ASEAN member countries on a rotating basis. Myan­mar hosted the 11th ASEAN Working Group on Halal Food Meeting in 2015 and is now hosting the 21st meeting for the second time. — MNA/TH