Published
09/17/2026, 17:40Kyrgyzstan and South Korea have agreed on the mutual recognition of halal certification, which should make it easier for South Korean companies to export relevant products to the Kyrgyz market.
The memorandum was signed by the president of the Korea Testing and Certification Organisation (KTC) and the director of the Kyrgyz Centre for the Development of Halal Products. This was reported by the South Korean news agency NewsPim.
Korean exporters will no longer need to obtain separate local halal certificates if their products are already certified by KTC. This should reduce the time, administrative burden and costs for businesses.
The parties also intend to jointly conduct training and provide consultancy on halal certification issues.
The agreement was one of 18 cooperation documents signed by Kyrgyzstan and South Korea on 16 September as part of the summit between the two countries.
The agreement is particularly interesting given South Korea’s dietary habits. Pork is one of the most widely consumed meats there — around 26–28 kg per person per year, according to data for 2022–2023 cited in reports by the OECD and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs of the Republic of Korea.
However, halal certification means much more than simply the absence of pork. It sets out requirements for raw materials, production methods, processing, equipment and the prevention of halal products coming into contact with prohibited ingredients.
