Muslim population growth and trust in halal-certified foods are creating new opportunities in the world's halal food market for Thai halal food traders, say exhibitors.
They were speaking from the 18th Malaysia International Halal Showcase (Mihas) 2022.
Mihas, organised by the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade) under the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (Miti) from Sept 7–10 in Kuala Lumpur, is a platform for Malaysian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to access halal market opportunities.
This year, more than 200 exhibitors from 32 countries participated in the showcase with more than 1,200 booths. Of them, at least eight were Thais. Some were invited by Malaysian Embassy in Thailand while others were invited by Malaysian suppliers.
The Department of International Trade Promotion under Thailand's Commerce Ministry also put a wide range of Thai halal foods and products on display.
Napaporn Charoenphak, managing director of NR Coconut Sugar Co Ltd, who exports coconut sugar to Malaysia, said she has been doing business with a Malaysian halal food importer who invited her to attend the event to promote her products.
She said she applauded initiatives undertaken by the Matrade as it was giving Thai traders opportunities to explore the global halal food market post-Covid-19 pandemic.
She said she talked to sellers and buyers and found the demand for halal products and services among consumers from both Muslim and non-Muslim countries is high. They were looking for new halal food and products for sale in their countries.
"That's why I see that there are still opportunities for Thais who really want to do halal food businesses because of the increase in global Muslim population," Ms Napaporn said.
According to Matrade, globalisation trends in commercialisation increases the demand for halal products and services among consumers from all walks of life. The increase in global Muslim population has reached 1.9 billion since last year.
Mihas this year placed special emphasis on helping local and international players look to innovation and sustainable initiatives.
Pinyada Kerdmongkon, managing director of Master Products Enterprise Co, Ltd, who was looking for new business partners to develop her halal food ingredients and flavours business, said she had met several international and Malaysian sellers at a business matching session at Mihas.
She said it was not her first time at the event.
She had attended Mihas several times and was able to see out good business partners. "Trust is essential for good relationships between sellers and buyers and I found that at this event,'' she said.
Prateep Apimahamangkang, director of Always Wealth Co Ltd, an exporter of canned fish, said the world's halal food market is looking for new halal food business operators.
Mr Prateep suggested, however, that Thai operators who want to do halal food businesses must be sure their products are of high quality and in line with halal standards and qualifications.
"That's not an easy task. These Muslim countries have a checklist for that,'' he said.
Datuk Mohd Mustafa Abdul Aziz, chief executive officer of Matrade, said there has been a significant rise in the number of Malaysian exhibitors including MSMEs taking part in Mihas since it was first organised in 2004.
Mr Mohd said local exhibitors had increased 411% in just a year. Most were MSMEs and many relatively young.
"Halal industry is big industry. It is an opportunity for Malaysian businessmen to explore international markets. We encourage more micro, small and medium size companies to take advantage of the programme and activities organised by Matrade,'' he said.
"Now you [Malaysian companies] can't focus on domestic markets because they are too small. For international companies, they are able to use Malaysia as a hub. This will be a springboard for them to reach other markets within the region. The Asean market is huge,'' the Matrade CEO said.
Halal is about cleanliness from farm to table, he said. Everything is hygienic and consumers want to know what the source is. People should look at how serious halal is in terms of complying with shariah law, he said.
"Now for us if you produce a halal product for example, you are not just able to sell the product to Muslim countries or non-Muslim countries. Look at Japan and Korea, where the halal sector is growing rapidly.
"Look at Japan when they organised the Olympics in Tokyo last year. They pushed the halal sector because they knew that they will be welcoming Muslim people from all over the world. Looking for halal products, Japan is concerned about the quality of halal products and their cleanliness.
"I think this is the advantage of halal products and why halal has been sought by so many countries,'' he said.
Mr Mohd said the market in Indonesia is huge with 230 million people.
"We can help each other. A lot of countries would like to learn from us in terms of the halal industry. There is not much difference in halal food products. Halal is halal. If you follow shariah law, they are safe to consume.
"If you go to the market [in Malaysia], you can see all the halal products. Basically they are the best. As I said, to acquire halal certificates from Malaysia's authorities is not easy. Halal is not just limited to food, but also services and Islamic finance,'' he added.
