Halal is a must in a Muslim’s life. He has to live inside the borders of Halal from his birth to his death. The most important part in the Halal is the Halal bite.
He has to account before Allah for every bite he has swallowed during his life. For this reason, each and every bite must be Halal. Halal food is the key to have a healthy and enlightened life both bodily and spiritually.
As global communications develop, Muslims have begun to realize that modern life and products that come with this sort of living result only in unsatisfaction, stress and unhealthy life and therefore they have started to look for the long-forgotten true way of life and search Halal products.
Where we are now is just the beginning. Ummah is just starting to wake up. Imperialist bosses are trying to prevent this development by means of states only to keep their markets in hand. Whatever they do, the goal will be achieved.The market potential for Halal foods is about 850 million dollars. Total Halal market is estimated to be around 2 trillions dollars. As of now, only 10% of this market is supplied.
There are about 15 millions of Jews but Kosher market potential is 250 billion dollars. This is an enormous number for such a small community. We can see that the consumers of Kosher products are mostly Muslims and non-jews.
I said only 10% of the market is supplied. Why is this figure so small? Why is the rest 90% not supplied?
-Many Muslim countries food markets are simple products that are not traded internationally.
-Many products produced in Muslim countries are not well-packed; Most products are supplied insufficient and inconsistentlyand there is a lack of brand marketing.
– Halal products do not conform to international standards for packing, reliability, labeling and quality.
-Halal food supply chain which is very sensitive is not fully established.
-Muslims with a population close to 2 billion are still unaware of what they consume and they are not very cautious on Halal selection.
With the reasons stated above, products that Muslims consume are still under non-Muslims control and by this non-Muslims can apply pressure on the Ummah as and when they need.
Many countries are lobbying in Islamic countries to increase their market shares of Halal. We can name USA, China, Japan and European countries.
To have Halal integrity,companies, countries and associations have to get together on a common basis and increase the standards of quality and working methods of productions. To increase public awareness, NGOs and media have to work intensively at all levels. International Shows and Conventions are very important activities for this.
Considering the 2010 Annual General Meeting of WHC will be held in Turkey, we take the opportunity to organize an exhibition where companies certified by WHC members can introduce their products, thereby giving a united message for the supply and demand of halal to the world. I hope that you, as respected members of WHC and managers of Halal certifying bodies, share the same opinions as I do.
Dr. Huseyin Kami BUYUKOZER
GIMDES President and Director of GIMDES Halal Products Research Institute
