Honestbee, an online grocery and food delivery service provider, has introduced Malaysia’s first halal certified food delivery service. Known as Bungkus by Honestbee (registered company name Echo Foxtort Sdn Bhd), the new entity is officially certified as a halal food delivery service provider by JAKIM.
The entire process is 100% halal thanks to a dedicated team and riders that only deliver halal food from halal certified restaurants. Unlike the normal Honestbee delivery staff, Bungkus (takeaway in Malay) by Honestbee has their own branded shirts, lanyards and delivery bags that can be easily identified as separate from the yellow corporate identity of Honestbee.
The reason for coming up with the halal certified food delivery service is to meet consumer expectation in terms of halal integrity. According to Honestbee, they “understood that customers and Halal certified restaurants do not want their food and drinks to be combined and contaminated by non-Halal food and drinks during delivery.” With “Bungkus by honestbee, there is a clear distinction in the minds of customers and Halal certified restaurants that they are engaging with a Halal certified company that is fully committed to Halal food delivery. “
Honestbee even has a separate social media platforms – Facebook and Instagram for Bungkus by Honestbee.
The participating halal food service providers include
- Mcdonald’s
- Marrybrown
- Wendy’s
- The Chicken Rice Shop
- Vivo Pizza
- O’Briens
- Hokkaido Baked Cheese Tart
- Secret Recipe
The halal-only delivery business model works in Muslim-majority Malaysia but not in China where there was a backlash against a similar service by leading meal delivery company Meituan Dianping in 2017. Netizens cited the move to separate the boxes for halal delivery as discriminatory towards non-Muslims.
In Malaysia and Indonesia, brands are increasingly catering to the lifestyle needs of Muslims by coming up with special halal-only products and services such as halal refrigerator (Sharp) and halal convenience stores. The latest move by Honestbee is expected to encourage other meal delivery firms to follow suit.
