Effective July 1, the Islamic Development Department (Jakim) will fine and jail food operators who fail to display the halal certificate and logo.

Halal hub division director Hakimah Mohd Yusoff said monitoring will be done in cooperation with the Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Ministry.

"We will visit every premise from March 31 to educate food operators on the need to obtain the halal certificate and not only display the halal logo," she said today.

Only halal certificates and halal logos issued by Jakim and the Federal Territory Islamic Religious Department (Jawi) are recognised.

"Halal certificates issued by the private sector are not recognised and operators who display them will be dealt with.

"This is stipulated under Section 16 of the Domestic Trade Act 2011," Hakimah said, adding that until February, a total of 1,420 applications for halal certificates had been received.

- Bernama