Bright future for Halal personal care

Not only is the Halal sector not affected by the recession, it has followed its own growth path, with the Institute for Personal Care Science of Australia valuing the global Halal Cosmetics market at a staggering $13 billion and growing. Muslims and non-Muslims alike are inspecting ingredients with a keen eye and making buying decisions based on purity of the products they use on their skin. Consumers across the spectrum read labels for ingredients and have become increasingly smart about what goes into their skin care, shampoo, toothpaste, hair dyes and cosmetics. By the same token, there is little difference in the Halal sector, where consumers want products which take both health and religious compliance into consideration and therefore are certified as Halal. The case for organic has been made. Today the growing demand for Halal products is following suit.

Definition of Halal

Essentially Halal is an Arabic term that means ‘permissible’ or ‘lawful’ under Islamic law. It is a term synonymous and increasingly used with another Arabic word, ‘Tayyib’, meaning wholesome, pure and clean. It is applied to many facets of a Muslim’s life such as food, drink, personal care and lifestyle. In Islam there are articles that are clearly prohibited or ‘Haram’ – the opposite of Halal. These include pork and all pork-related products, alcohol; carnivorous animals; birds of prey; and any food contaminated with any of these products, to name a few. Halal is core to the 1.6 billion Muslim consumers, both reassuring them and permitting them to use products and services in accordance to their lifestyle choices. And it is clearly a pivotal issue in the main preferences Muslims make in personal care products.