Dubai laboratory launches service to verify Halal cosmetics

Dubai Central Laboratory (DCL) at Dubai Municipality has launched a new service to verify Halal cosmetics and personal care products.

The Halal testing is being conducted with the help of the best technologies and international practices by DCL experts, state news agency WAM reported.

Halal pharmaceutical and cosmetics continue to expand as awareness about ingredients rises and new product development, such as permeable nail polish, the development of Halal vaccines and new ranges of nutraceuticals. Muslim spend is expected to reach $213 billion by 2021 in aggregate.

WAM said the service is being provided to protect the community from the “undesirable nature of ingredients and methods used in the manufacturing” of some cosmetic products.

“As the concept of Halal is most often centered around food products, DCL undertook the important role of developing this initiative using the Fourier Transform-Infrared Spectroscopy technology to detect the presence of pork fat and to confirm it by using Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry,” said Amin Ahmed, director of DCL Department.

“The new service is useful to the customers of these products, traders, statutory and regulatory bodies. It is one of the regulatory requirements of the Gulf Standard Specifications, which states that these products are free of pork fat and its derivatives,” he added.