Market, Consumer Behaviour Study Key To Halal Success

Borneo Bulletin:Policy needs such as science and scientific application cannot resolve all problems in penetrating the global Halal market. Economics and business elements such as market knowledge, consumer behaviour knowledge, knowledge on regulatory framework in the export markets are crucial factors to be considered to take the Brunei Halal industry forward.

Speakers from Malaysia made some recommendations for Brunei Darussalam's fledgling Halal food industry to pick up pace.

Mr Irfan Sungkar and Professor Dr Pazim Alias Fadzim Othman, who teach in the Department of Development Studies under the faculty of economics and administration at the University of Malaya, yesterday spoke during the Second International Economics Conference at UBD on opportunities for SMEs in Muslim countries.

The presenters said that the global trade in Halal products is growing and passing country boundaries in a magnitude never seen before since the last decade.

They said globalisation of the Halal food industry's supply chain creates opportunities for Brunei to tap into the global Halal food market, based on superiority of production factors that Brunei has (eg capital).

They added that the Halal food industry is not a 'single' market. It is a fragmented market where every country/ region has its own characteristics. Thus, the one size fits all strategy cannot, and will not work.

As Brunei Halal Brand's policy is already launched, the most pressing issue now is how the master plan and the most effective implementation level can be attained, the academicians said while adding the master plan must encompass the reality of today's Halal food market in different regions/countries and consumer behaviour.

A good policy needs a good master plan and implementation strategy and programme, they added.

As there has been a recent interest in penetrating the global Halal food market by several countries, especially in Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam, Thailand and the Philippines, Universiti Brunei Darussalam invited the two academicians from the University of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur to share their studies on the global Halal food market.

The elements behind this growth, they said were 'Super-Production' by large exporting countries; rise in disposable incomes in the (consumers of) importing countries; increase in awareness level and; Islamic countries have become the largest food importers.

In the presentation, the speakers said approximately 70 per cent of the total exports of frozen whole chicken from Brazil (estimated at 1.05 million MT) are Halal-certified. On top of that, about 90 per cent of the products are purchased by Middle East buyers.

Their presentation showed that between 30 and 32 per cent of total exports of frozen beef from Brazil is Halal-certified. France is the largest exporter of Halal chicken meat in Europe, at about 110,000 MT. Of this amount, 75 per cent of the total exports are Halal-certified products.

They went on to note that the United States is the third largest beef exporter in the world, where more than 80 per cent of it's frozen beef are exported as Halal-certified products to a number of Muslim-majority countries.

Speaking on the position of the Muslim countries, Mr Irfan said, 50 out of 57 OIC member countries are dependent on imported Halal meat products.

Their studies have also found that over the period of 20 years, the dependency has increased and the trade deficits in food products are also on the rise.

They provided an example where in Malaysia the Halal meat and meat-based products trade deficit has grown from about RM150-200 million in 1998 to more than RM1.1 billion in 2007.