Halal Authentication of Gelatin: A Bibliometric Review of FTIR Spectroscopy and PCR Techniques

This research provides an overview of a bibliometric analysis of research on halal authentication of gelatin, with particular focus on the application of Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy as well as Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) techniques. The analysis was conducted using 71 journal articles retrieved from the Scopus database, covering the period from 2012 to 2025. VOSviewer software was used to analyse publication trends, citation patterns, keyword co-occurrence, and international collaboration among countries. The results indicate that research activity in this field has gradually increased over time, with a notable rise in publications in recent years, reflecting growing global interest in halal verification and food authenticity. Citation analysis shows that the most influential studies primarily focus on the development of FTIR and PCR-based analytical methods for detecting and identifying gelatin sources. Keyword co-occurrence analysis reveals two dominant research themes, namely spectroscopic analysis using FTIR and molecular detection using PCR techniques. In terms of geographical contribution, Indonesia and Malaysia emerged as the leading countries in publication output. At the same time, the co-authorship network demonstrates regional collaboration primarily among countries in Asia and the Middle East. Overall, the findings highlight the increasing importance of reliable analytical methods and international collaboration in strengthening halal authentication research and supporting the development of effective halal assurance systems.