While Muslims are a minority in Vietnam, the halal food industry herehas great potential, Abdullah Abdulrohman, director of the Halal VietnamExport and Import Co Ltd, said.
Halal means "allowed" in Arabic,he told Viet Nam News, adding that it was not the choice of justMuslims, but also other people who give priority to cleanliness, safetyand quality of products.
To local enterprises, a halal label is a symbol of good quality and a must-have item to enter the Muslim market.
Hesaid while more and more Muslim tourists were visiting Vietnam, theysometimes discovered a shortage of halal food places in the country. Forinstance, they cannot find halal fast food outlets such as KFC orMcDonald's in Vietnam, while these are available in Singapore andCambodia.
At the same time, Abdulrohman saw a good opportunityfor Vietnamese enterprises in the halal food market as Vietnam is one ofthe leading exporters of agricultural products. "With cheap labourcosts, it can compete with others in both price and quality," he said.
Theprospects for local growth in food and beverages are positive. TheVietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry has forecast the industry willsee a 7.5 percent increase in sales and a 10.5 percent increase inrevenue this year.
Meanwhile, data from the Vietnam Report JSCsays the revenue from agricultural and food products such as coffee,vegetables, fruits and pepper, besides cashew nuts, seafood and ricereached nearly 20 billion USD in 2014.
However, Abdulrohman saidnot many enterprises had understood the potential of the halal market,with some not even knowing what halal food was.
Of the total3,500 enterprises working in the agricultural and food industry inVietnam, less than 200 enterprises have halal certifications to enterthe Muslim market.
Most of the enterprises having certificationare experienced ones such as Coca Cola, Pepsi, Masan and HighlandCoffee, besides Vinamilk, Vinamit and Huu Nghi.
A representativeof Vinamit, a well-known Vietnamese dry food brand, said Vinamit hadreceived the certification in 2009, and that now their sales networkcovered the ASEAN region and the Middle East.
DirectorAbdulrohman said to support and increase awareness of the importance ofthe certification as well as to provide more information on theopportunities for entering Muslim markets, they worked with relateddepartments in Vietnam, and organised workshops and training to promotethe use of halal certifications.
General Secretary of Food andFoodstuff of HCM City Association Nguyen Lam Xuan Thuy said localenterprises were developing fast and actively, adding that by learningmore about the Muslim market potential and with enough qualifications,they could maximise their business capacity and opportunities.Thailand, which is developing as the "kitchen of the world," could be agood example to be emulated, Thuy said, adding that Thailand and Vietnamshared several similarities such as the absence of a large Muslimcommunity, and having food processing industries with huge potential.But Thailand seems to have more experience in serving Muslim customers.
Whilemost of the population in Thailand is Buddhist, the country isdeveloping as the world's halal food research centre. The Philippines,where most of the people are Catholic, is one of the major halal chickenexporters to the Middle East. Singapore has most of the logistics andis a transit hub for halal food in the South-East Asian region.
Withmore recognition given to the certificates, "Vietnamese enterprisesstill have a good chance in the competition," Abdulrohman said.
Globalexhibition organiser UBM Asia will open Food Ingredients Asia 2015, thelargest trade fair in Asia showing technology, products and innovationsin food ingredients, from September 9 to 11 in Bangkok, followed by asimilar fair in Ho Chi Minh City in May.
UBM Asia's BusinessDirector Rungphech Chitanuwat said the exhibitions would not onlyconnect Vietnamese and Thai counterparts, but also potential Muslimimporters such as Indonesia and Malaysia.
She said thedevelopment of halal food manufacturing was one of the issues to beemphasised in the exhibition, and thus, the exhibitors would benefitfrom the event and the connections they make.
There were 1.8billion Muslims worldwide in 2010. The number is expected to double by2030, representing 27 percent of the world population.
Accordingto the figures from the Halal Vietnam Export and Import Co Ltd, 62percent of the world's Muslims live in Asia, and 127 million in theMiddle East, which imports 80 percent of its food requirements.
Muslimsin the European Union spend billions of dollars on halal food.Non-Muslim Dutch consumers also show interest in halal food, spending 3billion USD on it annually. Major retailers such as Tesco and Carrefourhave their own halal areas.-VNA
Halal means "allowed" in Arabic,he told Viet Nam News, adding that it was not the choice of justMuslims, but also other people who give priority to cleanliness, safetyand quality of products.
To local enterprises, a halal label is a symbol of good quality and a must-have item to enter the Muslim market.
Hesaid while more and more Muslim tourists were visiting Vietnam, theysometimes discovered a shortage of halal food places in the country. Forinstance, they cannot find halal fast food outlets such as KFC orMcDonald's in Vietnam, while these are available in Singapore andCambodia.
At the same time, Abdulrohman saw a good opportunityfor Vietnamese enterprises in the halal food market as Vietnam is one ofthe leading exporters of agricultural products. "With cheap labourcosts, it can compete with others in both price and quality," he said.
Theprospects for local growth in food and beverages are positive. TheVietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry has forecast the industry willsee a 7.5 percent increase in sales and a 10.5 percent increase inrevenue this year.
Meanwhile, data from the Vietnam Report JSCsays the revenue from agricultural and food products such as coffee,vegetables, fruits and pepper, besides cashew nuts, seafood and ricereached nearly 20 billion USD in 2014.
However, Abdulrohman saidnot many enterprises had understood the potential of the halal market,with some not even knowing what halal food was.
Of the total3,500 enterprises working in the agricultural and food industry inVietnam, less than 200 enterprises have halal certifications to enterthe Muslim market.
Most of the enterprises having certificationare experienced ones such as Coca Cola, Pepsi, Masan and HighlandCoffee, besides Vinamilk, Vinamit and Huu Nghi.
A representativeof Vinamit, a well-known Vietnamese dry food brand, said Vinamit hadreceived the certification in 2009, and that now their sales networkcovered the ASEAN region and the Middle East.
DirectorAbdulrohman said to support and increase awareness of the importance ofthe certification as well as to provide more information on theopportunities for entering Muslim markets, they worked with relateddepartments in Vietnam, and organised workshops and training to promotethe use of halal certifications.
General Secretary of Food andFoodstuff of HCM City Association Nguyen Lam Xuan Thuy said localenterprises were developing fast and actively, adding that by learningmore about the Muslim market potential and with enough qualifications,they could maximise their business capacity and opportunities.Thailand, which is developing as the "kitchen of the world," could be agood example to be emulated, Thuy said, adding that Thailand and Vietnamshared several similarities such as the absence of a large Muslimcommunity, and having food processing industries with huge potential.But Thailand seems to have more experience in serving Muslim customers.
Whilemost of the population in Thailand is Buddhist, the country isdeveloping as the world's halal food research centre. The Philippines,where most of the people are Catholic, is one of the major halal chickenexporters to the Middle East. Singapore has most of the logistics andis a transit hub for halal food in the South-East Asian region.
Withmore recognition given to the certificates, "Vietnamese enterprisesstill have a good chance in the competition," Abdulrohman said.
Globalexhibition organiser UBM Asia will open Food Ingredients Asia 2015, thelargest trade fair in Asia showing technology, products and innovationsin food ingredients, from September 9 to 11 in Bangkok, followed by asimilar fair in Ho Chi Minh City in May.
UBM Asia's BusinessDirector Rungphech Chitanuwat said the exhibitions would not onlyconnect Vietnamese and Thai counterparts, but also potential Muslimimporters such as Indonesia and Malaysia.
She said thedevelopment of halal food manufacturing was one of the issues to beemphasised in the exhibition, and thus, the exhibitors would benefitfrom the event and the connections they make.
There were 1.8billion Muslims worldwide in 2010. The number is expected to double by2030, representing 27 percent of the world population.
Accordingto the figures from the Halal Vietnam Export and Import Co Ltd, 62percent of the world's Muslims live in Asia, and 127 million in theMiddle East, which imports 80 percent of its food requirements.
Muslimsin the European Union spend billions of dollars on halal food.Non-Muslim Dutch consumers also show interest in halal food, spending 3billion USD on it annually. Major retailers such as Tesco and Carrefourhave their own halal areas.-VNA
