Weighing the Risk: A Qualitative Inquiry into the Effectiveness of Halal Logistics Implementation in Fresh Grocery Retailing

Abstract

As the global halal food market exceeds $2.7 trillion by 2024 and grows at a compound annual rate of more than 9% over the next decade, attention has increased on logistics processes that maintain halal integrity from farm to fork.Most extant halal logistics literature has focused on manufacturing, warehousing, and cross-border transportation, with little empirical attention to receipt and handling operations in grocery retail, where integrity is arguably most at risk .This study is filling in this gap by determining the impact of halal logistics implementation from three operational factors on food quality to support fresh groceries at a select grocery retail outlet in Malaysia. An exploratory qualitative case study design was used, where data from in-depth interviews with four purposively selected employees (2 from the Halal department and 2 from the Receiving department) and the transcribed text were analysed using NVivo.The results demonstrate that while segregation of entry points and other locations,as well as sealed packing practices, were fairly well implemented, shared use of weighing equipment between halal and non-halal fresh meat was identified as the greatest risk,which maintains a continual cross-contamination hazard that is only partially alleviated by disposable liners and consumer transport carts. The informants agreed on practical solutions, such as dedicated and clearly marked weight scales, protective covering for shared equipment, and regular sertu cleaning efforts.It expands the equipment-segregation-packaging framework to a retail receiving-dock context and provides concrete,low-cost elements for management and policymakers that can improve halal integrity assurance at the retail touchpoint with Muslim consumers.