Work

Religion and Regulatory Variance: Halal Regimes as Islamic Public Administration

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: ABSTRACT One quarter of humanity are Muslims, for whom halal food is an everyday consideration. The global food system has made assessing food products nearly impossible for consumers, requiring elaborate regulatory regimes. This article analyzes halal regulation as a notable example of Islamic public administration (IPA), as an application of religious principles to service delivery and product standards. These regulations govern multi‐trillion‐dollar markets annually. The article contests reification and demonstrates a variety of regulatory regimes, as well as cooperation and coordination, by examining halal in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. It contributes both to our understanding of IPA in an understudied region and to the literature on faith‐based regulatory regimes. Analytically, it demonstrates a “varieties of Islam” approach to understanding IPA traditions. We find that the diversity of Islamic traditions and institutional histories have fostered these varieties, and through a study of halal regulation identify new avenues for the study of IPA.

Source: Public Administration and Development

DOI: 10.1002/pad.70035

Authors: Logan Cochrane, Leslie A. Pal, Ibtisam B. Ajour

Institution: Hamad bin Khalifa University

Language: English

Topic: Halal products and consumer behavior

Subfield: Sociology and Political Science

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Peace, justice, and strong institutions

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,010