Discussed On Social Media That Yupi Candy Is Haram Because It's Made From Pork Skin, Is That True? This Is The Ministry Of Religion's Response

Head of BPJPH M Aqil Irham (Photo Via Ministry of Religion)

JAKARTA - There is information circulating that many people are talking about that the Yupi Candy is haram. They said, made of pig skin. Is that true?

The Head of the Halal Product Assurance Agency (BPJPH), Muhammad Aqil Irham spoke up. He asked the public to be more careful and wise when receiving information about halal or haram products.

"The viral mention that Yupi Candy is haram indicates that our society really cares about the halal or haram of a product. We take the positives. Instead, it is good as a control from the community and learning about halal which is beneficial for all of us," said Aqil in his statement quoted from ministry website, Tuesday, January 25.

Aqil reminded all companies that produce food, beverages, even cosmetics and drugs to pay attention to the issue of halal or haram. Because, the issue of halal-haram is a sensitive issue in society.

Moreover, Indonesia already has strict regulations regarding halal products, namely Law No. 33 of 2014. Especially for food and beverage products, the obligation for halal certification has begun on October 17, 2019, and will end on October 17, 2024.

"Candy or confectionery is a type of product that must be certified halal. This is stated in the Decree of the Minister of Religion Number 748 of 2021. Therefore, candy producers must know about this rule. If there are people who question halal or non-halal, it's actually easy. Whether the product is halal certified or not. If it is halal certified, it will be safe and easy to prove to the public," he said.

The company that produces Yupi candy is PT. Yupi Indo Jelly Gum. Head of BPJPH Halal Registration and Certification Center, Mastuki explained that PT. Yupi Indo Jelly Gum has registered through ptsp.halal.go.id (a halal certification application developed by BPJPH) on December 24, 2021. A total of 262 products have been registered. Currently, its status is still at LPPOM MUI as LPH (Halal Inspection Agency) for the product audit process.

"According to the rules, companies that apply for halal certification can choose LPH. Meanwhile, PT Yupi Indo Jelly Gum chose LPPOM MUI as LPH. Currently in the audit process. Furthermore, the audit report will be submitted to the MUI for the determination of the halalness of the product, and copied to BPJPH," he explained.

According to Mastuki, PT Yupi Indo Jelly Gum had registered for halal certification on December 23, 2019, but did not receive a halal certificate from BPJPH. They only received a halal decree from the MUI with the number 00110060360212 which was issued on April 1, 2020, and will expire on March 31, 2022.

However, the halal stipulation was not submitted to BPJPH. Whereas the Halal Certificate should have been issued by BPJPH.

"Indeed, since October 17, 2019, the registration for halal certification should have been handled by BPJPH. So we only found out when PT Yupi Indo Jelly Gum submitted a new halal certification document in 2021, they attached a halal decree from the MUI. This may be because the process was still manual at that time, so the company could not distinguish between the halal provisions issued by the MUI and the halal certificates issued by the BPJPH," he concluded.