Purpose -The aim of this paper is to determine the factors that most likely influence non-Muslims' understanding of Halal principles in a country where almost 60 percent of the population is Muslim. Design/methodology/approach -Cross-sectional data were collected through a survey of 800 non-Muslims in the Klang Valley, via structured questionnaires, to gather information on their understanding of Halal principles and food products. The logit model was applied to determine the extent to which socio environment factors influenced the respondents' understanding and familiarities with Halal principles and Halal food products. Findings -The results of this study suggest that non-Muslim consumers are aware of the existence of Halal food in Malaysia. In general, socio-environmental factors such as mixing with Muslims socially and the presence of advertised Halal food significantly influence non-Muslims' understanding of Halal principles. The findings also suggest that non-Muslims understand that Halal principles are also concerned about food safety issues and environmentally friendly ways of doing things.Research limitations/implications -The research used a quantitative method to analyse 800 non-Muslim respondents in the Klang Valley only. Practical implications -The practical implications extend to food policy decision makers and food marketers who might pursue strategies in their distribution and communication efforts which target the growing Halal food market segment among non-Muslims. Dissemination of information plays an important role in making non-Muslims improve their understanding of Halal principles. Originality/value -This study is one of the first to investigate the level of understanding of Halal principles among non-Muslims in Malaysia.

Purpose The concept of functional foods is not new to the Malaysian people. Functional foods as traditional medicine have made tremendous contributions over the past couple of centuries. The growth in the economy, coupled with a strong desire among the Malaysian consumers to maintain a healthy lifestyle has made functional foods an alternative medicine among the populace. Although the consumption of functional foods is increasing in Malaysia, relatively little is known about the factors which affect consumer purchase intention toward natural functional foods. The purpose of this paper is to determine Malaysian consumer intention to purchase natural functional foods. Design/methodology/approach A survey was conducted in the country where 2,004 household were interviewed using structured questionnaires. The theory of reasoned action (TRA) and health belief model were adopted and modified in this study. Descriptive statistics and structural equation modeling were used to analyze the collected data. Findings The results have shown that the data set was normal, valid and reliable. Attitude has a partial mediating effect on perceived barriers, perceived susceptibility and perceived benefits which influence consumer intention to purchase natural functional foods. Nevertheless attitude had no mediation effect on subjective norms for consumers to form their intention to purchase natural functional foods. In other word, subjective norms had a direct influence on consumer intention to purchase natural functional foods. Research limitations/implications The main concern of this paper is about the factors which affect consumer purchase intention toward natural functional foods. However the results from this paper are limited in terms of determining consumer purchasing behavior for natural functional foods. Originality/value The paper expands on the TRA and health belief model to examine the factors which influence Malaysian consumer purchase intention toward natural functional foods.

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the effectiveness of the Basic Student Entrepreneurial Programme (BSEP) among local university graduates who have undergone the training programme in entrepreneurship development. Design/methodology/approach -In total, 410 respondents who had participated in BSEP were interviewed with a structural questionnaire to gather information on their social attitude towards the effectiveness of BSEP on their intention to become an agri-entrepreneur. Chi-square analysis was used to determine the relationship between demographic variables towards motivating agrientrepreneurship among the participants. Findings -The results show that the participants agreed upon the effectiveness of BSEP in developing graduates' intention towards becoming agri-entrepreneurs. The results also show that there is a significant relationship between three variables which motivate participants to become agri-entrepreneurs. These were the origin of the participant, the presence of family members already involved in entrepreneurial activities and educational background.Research limitations/implications -The paper is only concerned with students' perceptions towards the effectiveness of BSEP in encouraging them to become agri-entrepreneurs. The results from this paper are limited in terms of determining whether they really become an agri-entrepreneur or not because this research only focuses on intention. Practical implications -The paper provides an important exploratory analysis of the BSEP programme to enable further research to take place in the area of entrepreneurship education. The findings provide a valuable insight on effective teaching methodologies in the area of entrepreneurship education. Originality/value -The paper expands on Ajzen's framework to provide a basis to improve the effectiveness of entrepreneurship education in Malaysia.

Consumer confidence in Halal food and logo are shaped by numerous factors that include information on food ingredients, variousHalal claims, and warnings on non-Halal products. The study attempted to construct consumer behavior of respondents through 3 approaches: after giving information, before giving information, and without information on Halal food based on the 2006 publication by the Consumer Association of Penang. This was done in order to predict the effect of Halal information on consumers' confidence while purchasing Halal-manufactured foods from 1,560 Muslim respondents residing in Malaysia. The multinomial logit model was used to estimate the parameters and the likelihood of the level of confidence differing among the 3 groups of respondents in this study. The results indicate that consumers are sensitive to the fact that any false information may result in the loss of their confidence level and it would also affect their intended purchasing decisions.

PurposeThe aim of this study is to examine the level service quality from the perspective of food manufacturers. Malaysia is gearing towards becoming a major player in the world Halal market. Its Halal certification is under the jurisdiction of the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM). The process of awarding Halal certificates involves not only an official site inspection of production plants but also the examination on the Halal status of raw materials. In 2007, JAKIM only approved 75 percent of the total number of applications for Halal certification.Design/methodology/approachA total of 547 small and medium‐sized enterprise manufacturers in Malaysia represented the population for this study. SERVQUAL gap analysis was used to measure the gap between clients' expectations and their perceptions of JAKIM's services.FindingsThe results of the analysis indicate that the biggest gap was in the empathy dimension, followed by responsiveness, reliability, assurance and tangibles. The results show that JAKIM had not met food manufacturers' expectations in all five service quality dimensions, especially the empathy dimension.Practical implicationsPractical implications extend to food policy decision makers involved in JAKIM to develop and formulate appropriate strategies to meet the needs of its clients more effectively.Originality/valueJAKIM could design training programs by emphasizing on the issues of human factors in service delivery, in particular the requirements of customer care, work ethics and human relations skills. Training in customer relationships is important and this applies to employees at all levels.