Capacity Building in Halal Food Education and Certification for Agricultural Vocational High School Students through a Local Potential-Based Approach in Riau

Abstract

Background: The halal industry is a rapidly growing sector with significant potential in Indonesia, particularly in Riau Province, which is known as a center of coconut- and palm oil-based agroindustry. However, halal literacy, especially regarding the Halal Product Assurance System (SJPH) and certification procedures, remains low among vocational high school students.
Aims: This community service program aims to improve students’ understanding and competence in halal food and certification through a contextual, practice-based learning approach.
Methods: A quantitative method with a pre-experimental one-group pretest–posttest design was applied to 25 students of SMK Negeri Pertanian Terpadu Riau. Data were collected through tests, observation, and documentation, and analyzed using paired sample t-test and N-Gain.
Result: The results showed a significant improvement in students’ scores, with the mean increasing from 72.53 to 88.00 and a t-value of 9.43 exceeding the critical value (2.064) at a 5% significance level. The N-Gain score of 0.56 indicates moderate effectiveness. The program also enhanced students’ higher-order thinking skills in identifying halal critical points and certification procedures. This activity effectively improves halal literacy and can serve as a relevant learning model for strengthening vocational competencies in the halal industry.