The first regional World Halal Forum officially opened today
By The Halal Journal Team published 2 years ago
Netherlands, 17 November 2009 – The first regional World Halal Forum (WHF) kicked off today at the World Forum Convention Centre in The Hague, Netherlands. Themed ‘Halal Potential – A Regional Focus’, WHF Europe began with a doa recitation followed by welcome remarks by the founder of the World Halal Forum, Hajjah Jumaatun Azmi, who is also the managing director of the organiser, KasehDia Sdn Bhd.
The event was officially opened by the WHF chairman and president of the Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI), H.E. Sheikh Saleh Abdullah Kamel, who welcomed the participants and speakers to the two-day event.
After the opening ceremony, the forum started with a session that provided participants with an overview of the global and the European Halal industry. This session began with a presentation on the concept of Halal and its growing importance in today’s economy by the Grand Mufti of Bosnia-Herzegovina, H.E. Dr. Mustafa Ceric.
Hajjah Jumaatun followed suit to present the latest figures on the potential of the Halal market, deliberate on current issues as well as provide suggestions on how to tackle possible repercussions in the global Halal market.
Following Hajjah Jumaatun was Dr. Cédomir Nestorovic, a Professor in the Management Department of the ESSEC Business School in Paris. He focused specifically on the European Halal food industry covering its current potential, trends and issues.
Next up on the rostrum is industry expert, Mr. Frits Van Dijk, who is the Nestle Suisse S.A.’s zone director for Oceania, Africa and the Middle East. In his presentation, he deliberated on the growing significance of Halal in global market expansion.
The session closed with an interactive panel discussion chaired by Mr. Darhim Hashim, CEO of the International Halal Integrity (IHI) Alliance, with Drs. Irfan Sungkar (WHF/ KasehDia industry advisor) and Hajj AbdalHamid Evans (Imarat Consultants senior analyst) as panellists.
After lunch, the forum resumed with a session that saw four presentations and a panel discussion covering the topic ‘Halal as a preferred choice and industry challenges’.
The session started with a presentation by the president of Intertek Food Services, Dr. Jochen P. Zoller on bridging the gap between international food safety standards and Halal standards.
The next presentation was by Mr. Bahri Ouzariah (vice CEO – Halal food group, Oriental Viandes Group, France) who presented the growth of Halal products in the retail market. Following that is a presentation by Ms. Carola Reintjes, president of the World Fair Trade Organisation Europe. In her presentation, Ms. Reintjes talked about Fair Trade focusing on upholding product integrity for consumer interest.
YBhg. Dato’ Dr. Mohd. Hashim Ahmad Tajudin, group managing director of the Chemical Company of Malaysia Berhad, followed suit to talk about the pharmaceutical industry as an emerging Halal growth sector.
An interactive panel discussion chaired by logistics expert, Ir. Marco Tieman (CEO of LBB International) with Mr. Darhim as panellist ended the session and the first day of the forum, with participants looking forward to more informative sessions that will take place tomorrow.