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Last Updated: Sep 25th, 2006 - 11:36:04 |
The first World Halal Forum has wound up in Malaysia after bringing together key players in the rapidly expanding multi-billion dollar halal industry.
Already the Halal product and service market is said to be worth almost US$600 billion each year. But industry leaders predict the global Halal food trade could be worth 1 trillion dollars annually, reaching a potential market several billion people.
Presenter - Emily Bourke. Speakers - Nordin Abdullah, the executive director of KasehDia and Bilal Mahmassani, Supreme Islamic Council for Halal in Australia.
BOURKE: Leaders from food manufacturing and government agencies , sat alongside investment bankers, and airline company representatives to discuss one of the world's growing industries - halal.
The World Halal Forum in Kuala Lumpur was a chance for the Malaysian government to promote itself as a future hub for halal products.
But it was also a forum for industry leaders to give stern warnings to their colleagues about the need for proper certification procedures.
Noordin Abdullah is the executive director of KasehDia which organised forum.
ABDULLAH: It is a big market and it's growing considerably, for two reasons.
One is the Muslim populations around the world are growing and two, the Muslim nations are actually becoming wealthier so they're actually consuming more food. If you're looking at Europe for example the population growth is only in the Muslim communities, in terms of immigration and also in terms of birth rates.
BOURKE: The underpinning principle of halal is to ensure the product or service is permissible under Islam - most commonly it applies to the preparation and handling of food ensuring it is in accordance with Islamic law.
Beyond food, halal can also be used to judge the fairness of business dealings and other transactions.
For example, airlines that do not service alcohol and financial services that don't apply interest are deemed permissable.
So cosmetics, clothes, pharmaceuticals, banking and tourism services - it's these areas that the Halal industry is keen to tap into bringing them into line with Islam.
But Noordin Abdullah says there are obstacles to expanding the market reach.
ABDULLAH: One is market access for some of the producers, getting into certain markets. And the other thing is looking at the different interpretations and the different standards that some countries to define halal. There is a certain level of suspicion and perhaps in some cases fraud, and there needs to be increased awareness in the industry and for consumers as well. I mean we're at the ground level in a lot of cases in the halal industry, so there could be quite a lot of missed opportunities both in terms of Australian producers and producers from all around the world.
BOURKE: Forum delegates have agreed to a set of resolutions that might go some way to better organising the industry.
Noordin Abdullah says the key is to boost production, expand delivery and maintain Halal integrity.
ABDULLAH: Two of the resolutions that the industry came up with, was to create an International Halal Industry Association which will act as the intermediary between governments, between certification bodies, and consumers so that the industry's interests are given a voice. The other resolution was for the creation of a specific fund from the Islamic development bank for the development of the Halal industry in Muslim countries as well as for minority Muslim groups in non-Muslim countries.
BOURKE: And he says the Halal industry should model itself of the successful and lucrative kosher industry.
ABDULLAH: If you look at the US for example there is 1000 certified Halal products, compared to 86,000 kosher products on the shelves, which means two things that there's huge potential for growth, considering that there are actually more Muslims in the US than the Jewish community there. And interestingly enough, there are more Muslim consumers of kosher in the US than the Jewish consumers simply because there's not enough halal products available.
BOURKE: Bilal Mahmassani is from the Supreme Islamic Council for Halal in Australia.
After attending this week's meeting, he says producers should be promoting Halal products as upmarket, mainstream, and as a global lifestyle brand.
MAHMASSANI: Halal is a holistic approach, it's not only the way that a cow is slaughtered, but it goes right back to the beginning, how they are fed, how they are treated, how quick the process of killing is, it has to be painless, it has to be quick, how the meat is then handled afterwards through to organic approaches, so we really are on par with other sort of trends of eating meat that is healthy, having something that is organic, so the organic industry is one that you could compare us to.
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