Malaysia eyes to become global hub of halal products and services

BANGKOK, March 27 (TNA) - Malaysia’s Trade Commissioner to Thailand has announced that the World Halal Week 2013 will be organised in Malaysia from April 3-6, as part of the country’s efforts to become a global hub for the production and trade of halal products and services and to make its certified halal produce to reach and appreciated by some 2.1 million Muslims worldwide in the foreseeable future. The Malaysian Trade Commissioner to Thailand, Niqman Rafaee M. Sahar, told a press briefing in Bangkok on Tuesday that Malaysia has many comparative advantages in the halal industry, thanks to the country’s potential to fulfill the need and demand of Muslims worldwide who are now more focused on quality and safe halal products. Sahar acknowledged that Malaysia has gained a strength to compete with many rival countries which have tried to emerge as the world's leading halal producers, as Malaysia's producers of halal products and services have differentiated themselves by acquiring a globally accepted accreditation, resulting in the country's having been already ranked as the most friendly-halal destination among member countries of the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation (OIC). As part of the ongoing efforts to attain the status of a world centre for halal products, Sahar explained, Malaysia will, thus, organise the World Halal Week 2013 in Kuala Lumpur to serve as a trade show for all halal products and services. According to the Malaysian Trade Commissioner to Thailand, the four-day event, which includes the 10th International Halal Showcase or MIHAS and the World Halal Week Conference or WHWC, will become a central meeting point for world delegates to promote their halal products and services, to introduce new halal innovation and technology and to learn updates in the global halal industry, as well as to discuss relevant issues. This year's event will bring in thousands of delegates and exhibitors from over 50 countries worldwide, including those from Thailand. The total global market value for halal food and other products is estimated at about 2.3 trillion US dollars annually, with the market value for halal food products alone assessed at 661 billion US dollars yearly, representing 29 per cent of the total value and 16 per cent of world food trade. (TNA)