UAE: Sharjah Cooperative Society throws weight behind Halal Food Middle East

Leading regional and international retail establishments and industry bodies have joined hands with Expo Centre Sharjah for the upcoming international Halal-certified food products exhibition - Halal Food Middle East.

The latest organization to throw its weight behind the show is local retail major Sharjah Cooperative Society (SCS), after OIC's trade promotion wing Islamic Centre for Development of Trade (ICDT), Halal Development Council, Halal Italia, Halal Research Council, Halal Australia, Co.Re.Is.Italiana, and OIC Today, among others.

The show, which is held under the patronage of His Highness Dr Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qassimi, Ruler of Sharjah and Supreme Council Member, has the support of the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Federation of UAEChambers of Commerce and Industry, apart from several leading retailers, food producers and dealers. 

Billed as a one-stop platform for facilitating and sourcing the sale and purchase of food and related products that conform to Halal requirements, Halal Food ME will be held at Expo Centre Sharjah from December 10 to 12, 2012, and will aim to tap into the $2.77 trillion international Halal food industry.

"Preparations are under way to make the inaugural Halal Food ME a highly successful trade show. We launched the show globally during the 8th Malaysia International Halal Showcase (MIHAS) in Kuala Lumpur and we will promote it globally. We just finished a promotional tour of China and will now be heading to Thailand. The support and participation of Sharjah Cooperative Society will add more credence and strengthen the value proposition of Halal Food ME," said Mr Saif Mohammed Al Midfa, Director-General of Expo Centre Sharjah.

Sharjah Cooperative Society's decision to participate in the show comes following a meeting between Mr Midfa and Mr Majid Al-Junaid, Director-General of SCS, and will help achieve the larger goal of strengthening ties and partnerships with government departments in the country.

"Sharjah Cooperative Society has a vital role in providing Halal-certified food products to Sharjah and the Northern Emirates. Its success is well-known and we are delighted to have them on board for Halal Food ME," Al Midfa added.

SCS is a leading establishment in providing good quality foodstuff at competitive prices to consumers and supporting social cooperation to create a more secure society. Founded in late seventies, SCS has several outlets in the Emirates and is an industry leader that is a winner of the Sharjah Economic Excellence Award several times.

The first edition of Halal Food ME is positioned as the most comprehensive show of its kind in the region, featuring Shariah-compliant food and beverages, bakery and confectionaries, broth products, food ingredients, frozen food, health products, herbs and spices, legumes & cereals, nuts and seeds, pastas and noodle, processed & seafood, snacks, and fruits & vegetables.

The show will attract exporters & importers, traders & wholesalers, supermarkets, hypermarkets, departmental stores, convenience stores, food manufacturers, food processors, hotels, restaurants, cafes, catering companies, distributors, retailers, suppliers, food service outlets, investors, hospitals, ship chandlers , airlines, agricultural associates, agents, media, business & trade associations, government bodies, food associations, Halal certification bodies and trade promotion offices.

(Ame.Info.Com / 17 July 2012)

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Malaysia’s halal logistics sector on the uptrend

KUCHING: Malaysia is expected to see its US$1.9 billion (RM6.05 billion) halal logistics sector to grow in tandem with the halal food industry.

The industry was pegged to be a lucrative business thanks to the huge number of Muslims in the world which currently stands at 1.79 billion, said Inside In­vestors country publisher Cory D’Abreo.

“In Malaysia there are approxi­mately 17.5 million Muslims, accounting for 60.4 per cent of the total population,” he stated in his report.

Thus, D’Abreo said the increase of halal food exports could fur­ther boost the logistics growth in Malaysia as there would be a need for freight-forwarding and transportation services.

D’Abreo further pointed out that it required highly sophisticated and strictly controlled logistics operations to prevent the cross-contamination of products dur­ing storage and distributions.

“Dedicated logistics infrastruc­tures and manageable halal logistics operations are crucial for any logistics service provid­ers keen to venture into the halal industry,” he added.

Logistics service providers need to equip themselves with the ability to fulfil the halal require­ments, besides maintaining the high efficiency and effectiveness of their operations to reduce the logistics costs for clients.

Going forward, Malaysia has the potential to become a global halal hub, supported by the MS2400 Halalan-Toyyiban standards that ensured all halal practices were incorporated across difference logistics functions.

Additionally, Frost & Sullivan estimated that halal logistics was worth about US$1.9 billion in the Ma­laysian halal food industry.

“There are a lot of opportunities for local logistics service pro­viders in Malaysia considering the potential of the global halal food market, valued at about US$1.2 trillion in 2010,” added D’Abreo.

“Given Malaysia’s strong halal brand recognition and halal lo­gistics standards, local logistics service providers should tap into the growth opportunities in the halal sector,” he added.

On top of that, Malaysia could also potentially become the regional halal hub in Asia con­sidering that Asian countries contribute about 64 per cent of the global halal food expenditures, valued at about US$770 billion.

Malaysia’s halal food industry alone was valued at about US$15.7 billion in 2010. It exported a total of RM3.94 billion worth of halal-processed food in 2008 to the Or­ganisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) countries.

“International Investor together with our knowledge partner, frost & Sullivan believes that local logistics service providers should create awareness with current manufacturers and re­tailers to use halal compliant lo­gistics services to penetrate into the majority Muslim community in Malaysia,” D’Abreo said.

“On the other hand, Malay­sian logistics service providers should also focus on developing and expanding the range of serv­ices offered to compete with the international logistics provid­ers,” he added.

He further suggested that Malay­sian logistics providers should put more focus on logistics tech­nologies that could increase their competitiveness advantages.

“The logistics industry is also expected to consolidate due to the fragmented nature of the sector. Major logistics service provid­ers are likely to increase their market share by mergers 

and acquisitions,” he concluded.

(Borneo Post Online / 15 July 2012)

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Alfalah Consulting - Kuala Lumpur: www.alfalahconsulting.com
Islamic Investment Malaysia: www.islamic-invest-malaysia.com

Oman Development bank (ODB) plans to boost Islamic banking

Muscat: In its efforts to provide customers with banking products and services that are in line with the Islamic banking, Oman Development bank (ODB) has decided to set up a team tostudy the products and services the bank offers and analyse the possibility of adding new services that are in conformity with Islamic law.

According to the decision, the team will submit its report within three weeks.

It may be mentioned here that the Sultanate has decided to establish Islamic banking and opening new outlets for Islamic banking products and services at the banks.
The Oman Development Bank aims to cater to the rising demand for Islamic banking services and products in the country, the management said. 

(Times Of Oman / 15 July 2012)
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Banks plan Shariah assets for Asian millionaires

Kuala Lumpur/Hong Kong: Standard Chartered Plc will start Islamic private banking services in Asia and CIMB Group Holdings Bhd. plans to roll out new products for the wealthy as they target rich Muslims who have limited investment options.

The UK’s second-largest lender by market value will offer Shariah-compliant products tailored to meet the needs of people who have at least $2 million (Dh7.35 million), Wasim Saifi, the Kuala Lumpur-based global head for Islamic consumer banking, said in a July 6 interview.

Malaysia’s CIMB will market more instruments in the fourth quarter for clients with a minimum of 1 million ringgit (Dh1.15 million), Badlisyah Abdul Gani, chief executive officer of CIMB Islamic Bank Bhd., said in a July 10 interview.

CIMB says Islamic private banking has been slow to take off due to the challenge of creating enough investments that comply with Shariah law, while Standard Chartered estimates that seven out of eight Muslims globally bank according to non-Islamic principles.

(Gulf News.com / 15 July 2012)

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New Zealand: Tapping into the halal economy

The Muslim slaughtermen turns the sheep to face Mecca, offering a prayer to Allah as he slits its throat and leaves the sheep to bleed out.

This bloody image is the face of halal in New Zealand, but business leaders will have to move past it if they want a piece of the largely untapped $2.3 trillion halal economy globally.

"Halal is not about ritual slaughtering of animals," said Jamil Bidin, chief executive of Malaysia's Halal Industry Development Corporation.

"If you go beyond that, halal is not only in food products, but non-food."

Halal, which simply means "permissible" in Arabic, relates to the Islamic beliefs around what can and cannot be consumed. A cosmetic containing animal products or alcohol, for example, might not be considered halal.

Bidin is part of a visiting delegation who spoke at the University of Auckland Business School's Asia Dialogue conference today.

The delegation leaders, which also included Malaysian billionaire Tan Sri Halim Saad, want Kiwis to realise that the true scope of the halal economy extends beyond just meat.

Cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, financial services and furniture are just a few of the opportunities they identify, with no shortage of demand and virtually no supply.

"If you look at the requirements of the Islam religion, if there is a halal product available you must consume or use halal product," said Bidin.

"With just one logo on your product, you will have an additional 1.8 billion Muslim customers around the world."

Certification has been one of the main barriers to uptake of halal practices, with a range of licensees here adhering to varying standards and intepretations of Islamic law.

One representative spoke out at the conference to say he was surprised that others did not consider the process simple or transparent.

"It looks like we have not done a good enough job in communicating that to the industry."

Bidin and Halim Saad said that New Zealand would need support - from Government or elsewhere - to continue to raise awareness and dispel misconceptions.

"There needs to be a body to provide some kind of advice or guidance to the industry players," said Bidin.

In Australia, he said, the halal economy was already on the government agenda because of the sizeable economic contribution it provided.

Most New Zealand abattoirs already perform halal killing, but Halim Saad said he was looking for an end-to-end process "from farm to fork".

That would extends the practice to every single link in the supply and logistics chain, raising the possibility of creating international halal networks.

(Stuff.Coz.Nz / 13 July 2012)

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Call to introduce dirham, dinar to end usury

LAHORE

Renowned Spanish scholar Sheikh Umar Ibrahim Vadillo has called for introducing the system of Islamic dirham and dinar in order to get liberty from usury.

Addressing a seminar – titled “Effects of usury on economy and economic situation of Muslim countries adopting interest system” organized by Punjab University’s Academic Staff Association (PU-ASA) – Vadillo said a group of the richest families of the world had introduced the system of usury in order to control the economy and states of the world.

He said the original model was Muamalat and the full implementation of Muamalat meant the establishment of an Islamic trading bloc, based on our model of trade and our currency, the Islamic Dinar and Dirham. He said an Islamic Trading Bloc was not just for trade among Muslims but it was also for non-Muslims.

Regarding the validity of gold, he said that its greatest strength was the fact that it had been the best international money in history. He said the people of America had become slave of the Wall Street and they wanted freedom from it.

Vadillo said our banking system was not so strong and we needed to expunge it from usury and planning was underway for the purpose. He said imperialistic powers should understand that now the age of stupidity had ended and now we understood their conspiracies. To achieve this goal, he said, knowledge was the only option through which we could defeat them.

Citing the example of China, he said that we should adopt the system of gold and silver which would automatically devalue dollar. He urged the government of Pakistan to implement the system of Dirham and Dinar in Pakistan. In his inaugural address, PU Vice Chancellor Dr Mujahid Kamran said all the problems facing the mankind were because of the present system of economy. He said that nine million houses had been foreclosed in the US for not paying interest.

He said that these banking families had imposed wars on mankind and now they were imposing third World War. He urged the Muslims to follow the teachings of Quran as over 700 Aya’hs of the holy book focused on solving the mysteries of universe.

(The International News / 13 July 2012)

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Islamic finance strong alternative to face economic crisis

Malaysia is unique among Muslim countries in operating both conventional interest-based banking side by side with Islamic finance.

In the past decade the industry has made steady inroads and now accounts for 20 percent of the local banking assets. 

And in these times of economic uncertainty, it is not just consumers but also governments and major corporations that are looking for funding through Islamic channels, which are not just profit driven but based on ethical considerations. 

Dr Soualhi says Malaysia has put in place a strong regulatory, legal and Shariah framework. That has helped Malaysia become the largest issuer of sukuk or Islamic bonds in the world, to the tune of 150 billion US dollars. 

It's also gaining reputation for coming up with new Shariah-compliant products and services, as well as becoming a hub for education specializing in Islamic finance. But some people in the industry say there is still plenty of room for improvement and growth. 

Islamic finance is one of the key areas the government has identified to move the economy forward. Globally the industry is worth an estimated one trillion dollars and expected to grow by at least 25 percent a year. 

Although Malaysia is one of the leaders in Islamic banking, it also faces stiff competition from even non-Muslim players like London and neighboring Singapore, which are keen to grab a slice of the Islamic finance pie.


(Press Tv / 15 June 2012)



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Alfalah Consulting - Kuala Lumpur:www.alfalahconsulting.com 
Islamic Investment Malaysia:www.islamic-invest-malaysia.com