Maqāṣid al-Sharīʿah-Based Measuring Instruments in the Halal Economy: A Preliminary Review

Abstract

The halal economy, encompassing sectors like food and beverages, finance, tourism, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics, is rapidly growing worldwide, and significantly impacting economies like Malaysia's. But this industry, which follows Islamic ethical standards that are largely influenced by the maqasid al-Shariah framework, lacks comprehensive Shariah-based evaluation tools to measure sectoral adherence to these principles. The growing global demand for halal products highlights the need for robust evaluation frameworks to support decision-making, consumer protection, and ethical benchmarks. Although maqasid al-Shariah theory is well-recognized in halal research, its measurable application in conceptual models remains underdeveloped. Addressing this gap with improved maqasid-based measuring instruments could enhance ethical compliance and economic sustainability. Given the rising research interest and sectoral growth in Islamic finance and halal markets, a systematic review of existing literature is necessary to establish maqasid-based indicators for evaluating products, services, and overall sector performance within the halal economy. The research explores the maqasid al-Shariah-based framework to measure ethical compliance and performance in the halal economy, supporting informed decision-making, consumer protection, and sustainability. This study conducts a thematic review of the maqasid-based criteria for halal economy measurement using qualitative methods and SWOT analysis to explore thematic conceptualisation towards a comprehensive preliminary review for future research directions. This study finds that integrating maqasid al-Shariah-based metrics into the halal economy offers potential relevance for ethical alignment and standardization but faces challenges like abstract measurement, stakeholder resistance, and metric standardization needs.