Recent technological approaches for halal authentication of food products

Halal authentication is a form of consumer protection against non-halal food products. Food products’ ingredients and processes can make them either halal or not. Mixing halal products with non-halal products, even in just small amounts, can complicate the halal authentication process. The process of slaughtering halal animal meat that does not follow Sharia law will make it a non-halal product and, therefore, difficult to authenticate. Furthermore, science and technology are needed to answer this kind of challenge. PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction), UHPLC-HRMS (Ultra High Performance Liquid Chromatography-High Resolution Mass Spectrometry), GC-MS (Gas Chromatography-Mass Spektrometry), 1H-NMR (Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance), and FTIR (Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy) are the answers to the latest selective, sensitive, and accurate technologies that can address the halal authentication challenges of increasingly difficult food products. These instruments can group halal and non-halal food products based on the type of ingredients and the process. DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid), metabolites, amino acids, lipids, and volatile compounds are potential markers that can be used as references in the halal authentication of food products since each species has different compound characteristics. Science and technology can be logical considerations when determining whether food products are halal.