The impact of halal certification on purchase intention of muslim consumers in Malaysia : a study of imported products from MENA countries

Abstract

The objective of this research is to investigate the role of Halal certification in the purchase intention of Muslim consumers living in Malaysia on food products from Muslim majority countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Kullu Halal (all Halal) concept is highly applicable in the MENA region as most of the population is Muslim. However, it is important to note that these countries also heavily import some products from non-Muslim countries and some of the ingredients used in the production are also animal-based. Therefore, the researcher believes that it is important to conduct research that investigates the role of Halal certification in purchase intention of Muslim consumers in Malaysia towards the products imported from Muslim majority countries in MENA. A Halal certification is a form of safety for Muslim consumers as the presence of it will ensure that the food products are safe for their consumption. The research proposes a framework with the Theory of Planned Behaviour as a basic theory. The researcher believes that it is imperative to study about Halal certification towards food products from Muslim majority countries in MENA as the studies about the Halal certification in a certain region are quite minimal to non-existent. The issues encountered in the Halal certification demand are mostly related to Health, Animal Welfare, Religiosity and Food Safety (Halal Certification Motives). The impacts of Halal Certification Motives, Attitude, Subjective Norm, and Perceived Behavioural Control on Purchase Intention are tested. Foreign Ingredients Awareness and Food Types Awareness act as moderating factors and are also investigated. Apart from that, the ability of Attitude to mediate the path between Halal Certification Motives are also analysed. A food types prioritization study is conducted to understand the types of food that critically need Halal certification. Country of origin study is presented to showcase the level of trust of Muslim consumers in Malaysia towards the Muslim majority countries in MENA. Willingness to pay study is performed to understand the extra costs that the Muslim consumers are willing to bear if the Halal certification is attached to the products. The study employs a self-administered questionnaire and the study was conducted towards the Muslim consumers living in certain areas of Klang Valley, Malaysia. Five hundred questionnaires were distributed, and 417 questionnaires were deemed usable. Halal Certification Motives were found to be strongly correlated with both Attitude and Purchase Intention. Attitude and Perceived Behavioural Control were also found to be strongly correlated with Purchase Intention. The structural path between Subjective Norm and Purchase Intention was statistically significant at p < 0.05. The results showed that Attitude does not moderate the path between Halal Certification Motives and Purchase Intention as it was discovered that Halal Certification Motives factor has a lot stronger connection to Purchase Intention compared to Attitude to Purchase Intention. Food Ingredients Awareness showed a moderating effect of Halal Certification Motives on Attitude, while Food Types Awareness failed to moderate the path. The research also presented a food types prioritization study and the results showed that meat products, canned food products, and confectionery products were deemed the most important to be certified. The country of origin study showed that Algeria, followed by Iran, Lebanon, Iraq, and Bahrain were deemed to be the least trustworthy countries if Halal certification is not present in their food products. The results of willingness to pay study displayed the cooperation level of Muslim consumers in Malaysia as most of them are willing to pay an extra cost of 0-10% and only less than 10 per cent of them (41 respondents) are not willing to pay an extra cost. The studies indicate that the presence of Halal certification is possible and will be profitable for the food industry players in the MENA region. The presence of Halal certification is deemed important for all the countries, especially those that received low scores in the country of origin study.