Manila. The Philippines is seeing dollar signs in the halal industry as Manila seeks an ASEAN-wide agreement to clear the way for mutual recognition of each other’s certifications, with Indonesia becoming a starting point.

Muslims worldwide spent $2.6 trillion on halal goods and services annually as of 2024. The consumption is expected to reach nearly $3.6 trillion by 2029. As the demand for Sharia-compliant goods grows, Indonesia — home to the world’s largest Muslim population — becomes a “very natural partner” in halal recognition and standards development, according to Denise Cheska C Enriquez, a senior official for the international trade relations bureau at the Philippines Department of Trade and Industry.

“This halal industry is a very big one, … and it is only continuing to grow. The Philippines definitely wants a piece of that pie,” Cheska recently told Southeast Asian journalists joining the 10th ASEAN Media Forum in Manila.

“Indonesia already has a lot of experience in this field. We are pursuing a mutual recognition with them, not just to learn from them, but also to begin developing regional standards. We are very much active in working with them to ‘ASEAN-ize’ this effort.”

For such standard-related agreements, the more the participants, the merrier. Cheska added: “[Because it means] the wider market you can access.”

She did not provide any timeline on the Indonesian deal, let alone the regional one. 

Indonesia will make halal labeling mandatory starting on Oct. 18, putting its trading partners in a race against time to maintain market access.

The country’s halal assurance agency BPJPH has mutual recognition agreements with two Filipino certifiers as of early August, both specializing in food and beverages, according to its database. It has also struck similar deals with other certifiers from fellow ASEAN nations, including Malaysia and Singapore. 

Indonesia reported that its trade with the Philippines totaled $5.3 billion from January to May 2026. Trade tilted in Jakarta’s favor with a surplus of almost $3.6 billion.

The regional halal standard push came amidst ASEAN’s intentions to ramp up intra-group trade. According to the bloc’s secretary-general Kao Kim Hourn, the trade that ASEAN countries made with each other only accounted for 21% of the group’s total commerce activities. Kao named a 35% share would be more ideal.

“We need to trade more among ourselves,” Kao said.

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