The growth rate of the global halal industry has increased in recent years, from 7.5% in 2015 to more than 8% in 2016 and is expected to continue to increase in 2017 and beyond. Indonesia in particular has great potential in the development of the halal industry sector because of the percentage of Indonesia’s population which constitutes 12.7% of the world’s Muslim population. The large potential of Indonesia in the halal industry sector can support national economic growth. The market for halal industry in Indonesia, especially the food, travel, fashion, medicines and cosmetics sectors has reached around 11% of the global market in 2016.

Behind the development of the halal industry globally, there are challenges especially in the health sector. The fact about guaranteeing halal products on drugs is still very alarming because the data from LPPOM MUI shows that out of 30 thousand types of drugs registered with BPPOM and circulating in the community, only 34 drugs are halal certified. In the food sector, data shows that Indonesia is the highest spending country for halal food compared to other countries in the world with a total expenditure of 170 billion US dollars. In the field of Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) is inseparable in the development of human resources in the halal industry. The security and quality of the halal industry are also closely related to the quality of human resources and the nation’s competitiveness.

The current development of the halal industry is fairly rapid in non-Muslim majority countries such as Thailand, South Korea, Russia, Mexico, Japan, and Spain. On the contrary, Indonesia has become a contested market target for halal products for foreign countries. This condition will backfire for Indonesia if there are no quick steps to follow up on this problem. Because Indonesian people will only be targeted by consumers in the halal industry market.

Strengthening regulatory development programs based on science and scientific and evidence according to standard development programs as well as strengthening the system of guidance and supervision of industrial security and its implementation in anticipation of the digital era needs to be done. To answer this problem U-GO Healthy Forum will hold International seminars and Call for Paper with the theme “The Role of Health Expert in Solving Contemporary Issues in Halal Industry” as the initial step to strengthen the security system of the halal industry.