The country is on track to become the Global Reference Centre for Halal Integrity and Centre for Innovation, Product and Trade through the strategies laid out under the 11th Malaysia Plan (2016 – 2020). Just last month, the Government has announced the establishment of the Malaysia Halal Council. This demonstrates Malaysia’s commitment to become a global Halal leader through better coordination in the development of the Halal industry,” said Dato’ Azman Mahmud (pix), Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Malaysian Investment Development Authority (MIDA) during the agency’s Plenary Session at the World Halal Conference (WHC) 2016.
Foreign companies have been leveraging on the country’s comprehensive Halal ecosystem that have been built over the years. Among the notable companies that have made Malaysia their base for halal products include Charoen Pokphand (CP) Holdings, Nestle, Kerry Ingredients, PureCircle, Cargill, Adeka Foods, Rikevita, Kewpie, IFFCO, Kellogg’s and Ajinomoto. In fact, Nestle has set up a Halal Excellent Centre in Malaysia.
“Just today, BRF S.A. a leading Brazil food company and one of the top producers of poultry under its flagship brand ‘Sadia’, a well-known Halal brand in the Middle East, announced its opening of an Investment & Development Office in Malaysia. In 2015, BRF was responsible for 14% of the world’s poultry trade.
MIDA has been engaging with this company for quite some time. We are glad that BRF has finally set up an office here to gather critical information and accelerate its on-going business development and feasibility studies to invest in Malaysia. I am confident that BRF will find Malaysia as their strategic global springboard to reach the Halal consumer markets around the globe,” informed Azman.
Not lagging behind are domestic players such as Ramly Food Processing, Mamee Double Decker, Dewina Food Industries, Felda Global Ventures (FGV) and Chemical Company of Malaysia (CCM) that have carved a name for themselves in Malaysia and the global markets.
In 2015, MIDA has approved an additional of 51 projects in this industry valued at RM2.6 billion with more than 2,900 employment opportunities. The majority of the approved and implemented projects are involved in the manufacturing of Halal food. MIDA’s engagement in WHC 2016 is part of its promotional efforts to provide first-hand information and insights of Malaysia as the Halal Gateway to global markets. The plenary session attracted more than 50 participants from both local and foreign companies.
“Built on past successes, Malaysia will continue to pave the way to accelerate growth in new, emerging and higher value added areas in the Halal industry. I trust that MIDA’s event at WHC today will translate into strategic partnerships that will propel the Halal industry in Malaysia to greater heights,” Azman further added.
