Ajinomoto bows to MUI demand on 'halal' products

Ajinomoto bows to MUI demand on 'halal' products

JAKARTA (JP): Taste enhancer producer PT Ajinomoto Indonesia
revealed on Tuesday that it will withdraw all its products from
the market, pending halal certification from the Indonesian
Ulemas Council (MUI). Only products with Halal certification are
permitted for consumption by Muslims.

Controversy over the halal status of the seasoning surfaced
when the council's Food and Drug Analysis Body (LPPOM MUI) found
evidence that, since October, PT Ajinomoto had used substances
derived from pigs in its production process.

Islam bans pork or any by-product derived from pigs.

The company's Manager of General Affairs and Personnel
Department Tjokorda Bagus Sudarta admitted that they had used
bactosoytone, extracted from pork, in place of polypeptone, which
is extracted from beef, as a medium to cultivate bacteria which
produces enzymes needed in the production of the taste enhancer.

"The reason was because it was more economical. But we used it
only as a medium. So, it's not included in the final product," he
told The Jakarta Post after a closed-door meeting with MUI
executives and officials from the Ministry of Religious Affairs,
hosted by the Ministry of Health's Director General of Food and
Control, Sampurno.

The result of LPPOM MUI's study, which is mandatory to renew
the halal certificate for food and beverages, has led MUI to
demand Ajinomoto withdraw its products.

As a result of MUI's demand, Ajinomoto has been using a plant
derivative as its medium since the end of November.

As for the products which have already been on the store
shelves, Tjokorda said that the company has withdrawn some of the
stock.

"We've withdrawn those in the major outlets. We will withdraw
the rest soon," he said.

Sampurno refused to comment about the meeting's result, saying
that he will reveal comprehensive information on Wednesday.

Separately on Tuesday, the head of LPPOM MUI Aisyah Girindra
said that the final product of Ajinomoto is halal, or permitted
to be eaten by Muslims.

"The enzymes have a similar function to those in our digestive
system. They reduce our food into small pieces, and then they
leave after doing their job," she told the Post.

But based on MUI's guidance issued in 1994, she added, it is
forbidden to use pork products.

"Therefore, we must adhere to the guidance," she added.

Meanwhile, Antara reported on Tuesday that many residents of
Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan, threw away their Ajinomoto
products and rushed to local stores to purchase an alternative
brand of taste enhancers.

"We'd rather lose our money by throwing away our supplies of
dubious Ajinomoto. I won't let my family eat haram (the opposite
of halal) food," said Nordahliana, a resident of Banjar Timur sub
district.

Catalyst

Sunarto Prawirosujanto, chairman of the Association of
Monosodiumglutamate (MSG) and Glutamic Acid (GA) Factories
(P2MI), said that the much talked about enzymes only function as
a catalyst in the production process and therefore will not be
included in the molecules of MSG and GA.

Catalysts are commonly used in a chemical reaction to, for
instance, speed up the reaction. It is often analogized as a
matchmaker, as it is not included in the reaction.

In his statement on Tuesday, Sunarto, who is also a
pharmacist, specified that the taste enhancer MSG is produced by
the chemical reaction between molasses and ammonia.

With the help of enzymes, both ingredients are changed into
GA. GA is then neutralized by Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH) and changed
into MSG, which is sold under the name of Ajinomoto or other
brands.

During the first process of GA production, Sunarto said,
enzymes do not undergo any changes because of their function as a
catalyst, and they are not included in the GA molecules.

In order to get the required number of enzymes, bacteria is
cultivated in a medium such as peptone, or in this case
bactosoytone, which is then eaten by the bacteria.

Therefore, according to Sunarto, MSG is free from peptone and
enzymes. Even if bactosoytone is indeed a pork product, it will
not be found in the molecules of MSG and GA as it has already
been consumed by the bacteria.(hdn)