Istanbul, 26 - 27 November 2025 – The Islamic Organisation for Food Security (IOFS) presented its forward-looking vision for the future of halal food systems during its dedicated sub-session at the 11th World Halal Summit (WHS 2025), held under the theme “Halal and Hi-Tech.” WHS 2025, held under the patronage of the President of Türkiye, brought together over 50,000 participants from more than 100 countries.
Delivering opening remarks on behalf of IOFS Director-General Amb. Berik Aryn, Dr. Memduh Ünal, Director of Programs, highlighted the limited presence of OIC Member States in global halal trade, despite representing a quarter of the world’s population. He noted that halal production and exports remain largely dominated by non-OIC countries, stressing the need to boost regional production capacity and develop competitive value chains.
Dr. Ünal emphasized that halal certification is now recognized globally as a standard for quality, safety, and ethics, offering a significant opportunity for OIC leadership. He underscored IOFS–SMIIC efforts to harmonize standards, enhance digital traceability, reduce trade barriers, and strengthen Member States’ technical capacity, noting that strong halal systems directly improve food security and market access.
Moderated by Ms. Shakhlo Atabaeva, the IOFS sub-session focused on harmonizing halal and food-safety standards, scaling innovation, and advancing digital traceability. IOFS showcased initiatives supporting farmers and SMEs, facilitating cross-border certification, and increasing intra-OIC trade.
The joint IOFS–SMIIC session, “Halal & Hi-Tech,” showcased innovative technologies shaping future halal assurance across OIC Member States, featuring:
· Dr. Abdul-Razak Abdul Hadi (Trili Maju Academy & Universiti Kuala Lumpur Business School) – “AI in the Halal Food System”, demonstrating real-time certification, automated compliance, and digital halal assurance platforms.
· Prof. Dr. Asif Ahmad – “AI as a Catalyst for Halal Food Supply Chain Transformation”, presenting predictive analytics for traceability, fraud detection, and risk management.
· Eng. Mohammad Etoom – “Gamma Radiation: A Versatile Tool for Food Preservation, Halal Compliance, and Sustainable Agriculture”, outlining its role in safe preservation and microbial decontamination.
· Dr. Saule Mussurova – “Improving Kazakh Wheat and Rice Varieties Through Platinum Standard Genomic Assemblies”, showcasing genomic technologies enabling nutritionally enhanced, traceable, halal-compliant grains.
Collectively, these presentations highlighted the transformative power of technology in building transparent, innovative, and future-ready halal food systems aligned with the IOFS mandate to strengthen food security across the OIC.
