ASEAN COMMUNITY OF ENTREPRENEURS
COVER STORY
Nobody Wants
to Miss the Halal
Business Boat
BY ROY CHEN
Prospects of the
halal business are
so enormous that
they have prompted
non-Muslim majority
ASEAN countries
– notably Thailand,
the Philippines and
Singapore – to jump
onto the bandwagon.
14
THAI EXPERIENCE
Japanese noodles and seaweed are
a step closer to being exported to
Muslim countries after an official
signing of an agreement with
Thailand’s National Food Institute
that aims to bring investment
from companies interested in
halal certification.
According to the NFI president,
Yongvut
Saovapruk,
Japanese
companies have been increasingly
interested in Thailand’s halal potential
and were looking to invest in its
Islamic food industry. The country
ASEAN COMMUNITY OF ENTREPRENEURS | ISSUE 2 : 2016
now ranks ninth for halal food exports
and has its own established market,
particularly in the largely Muslim
southern provinces notably .
“The Japanese are not familiar
with halal food which requires
a deliberate process including
acquiring the raw materials, the
cooking process and cooking
standards that have to match
specific religious requirements,” he
explained. “By changing some of
the procedures, the same product
can be sold to a broader group
of customers in those growing
Muslim communities.”