THE Department of Science and Technology (DOST)-Davao is already on their last leg of equipment procurement for the Halal Verification Laboratory (HVL) and hopes to finish by the third quarter of the year for the laboratory to officially start operations by the fourth quarter.
“This project was funded by the Philippine Council for Industry, Energy, and Emerging Technology Research and Development (PCIEERD) of DOST. It’s one of the councils of DOST that provides funding for research and development. The amount is about P50 million all in all,” said DOST Davao Regional Director Anthon Sales. On Tuesday, May 30, a procurement session with equipment suppliers was conducted at the DOST Regional Office.
The entire second floor of the Technology and Innovation Packaging Development Center building at the DOST Regional Office compound will be allotted for HVL.
Included in the equipment for procurement are the Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrum (GCMS) photometer, Liquid Chromatography Mass Spectrum (LCMS) photometer, and Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) machine.
The GCMS will be used for analysis of volatile materials such as alcohol content of a product as alcohol is also considered Haram. The LCMS will be used for analysis of free fatty acids that can be detected on different fats and oils.
“We need to check whether the fat detected on the food comes from pork or other animals, or even plants. Using that machine, we can distinguish if the fat that is in the food analyzed is from pork, beef, horse, or goat. The fats have different profile that we will be able to find out using LCMS,” said Sales.
The PCR is able to detect different DNA fragments to be able to test whether the protein types detected on a material is from pork, beef, or any other products.
Sales said they also employed two Muslim chemists to do analysis and testing at the HVL once it starts operation by the fourth quarter of the year.
“The purpose of HVL is to provide testing for certification process. The Halal Industry Development and Promotions Act states that DOST shall provide the testing services for certification purposes. Halal products should be certified by the Philippine Accreditation Bureau before they can be marked as Halal-certified,” said Sales during an earlier report.
“We decided that we should go into testing especially that we are in Mindanao. We have many Muslims and this is the center of the majority of the Halal productions and services. We realized the market and the demand for this laboratory,” he said.