Ahmad Zahid: Malaysia should leverage Asean chairmanship to expand halal market

The Star

12-05-2025

BUTTERWORTH: Malaysia should seize the opportunity of its Asean Chairmanship in 2025 to expand the market for halal products and penetrate the Asean market, which comprises a population of 600 million, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamid.
He said that although halal products from Indonesia and Thailand are marketed in Malaysia, local halal products have yet to penetrate the Asean market due to insufficient marketing efforts.
"Since 600 million is a realistically large market for Malaysian halal products, the efforts by the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade) are geared towards expanding the market among Asean countries," he said.
He was speaking to reporters after launching the Penang Halal Industry Development Council here on Monday (May 19), which was also attended by Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow and Majlis Amanah Rakyat (MARA) Chairman Datuk Seri Asyraf Wajdi Dusuki.
Ahmad Zahid, who is also Malaysian Halal Industry Development Council chairman, proposed the establishment of an Asean Halal Council and the organisation of an Asean Halal Forum this September.
He said the Malaysia International Halal Showcase (MIHAS) will also feature halal products and invite Asean industry players for 'business matching' with potential importers.
In addition, he said Malaysia is also collaborating to expand the production of halal gelatine-which currently has only one producer in the country-for both Asean and international markets, as existing gelatine products lack the proper standards required for other halal products.
"This includes sectors such as medicine, cosmetics, and others, because we tend to focus only on the food and beverage (F&B) service sector, when in fact, other sectors hold vast market potential and should be further developed," he said.
Meanwhile, Ahmad Zahid noted that Malaysia possesses a comprehensive halal ecosystem, including halal certification recognised by 92 foreign halal certification bodies from 48 countries.
At the same time, he congratulated Penang for becoming the first state in Malaysia to establish a Halal Industry Development Council.
Malaysia continues to lead the global halal industry, recording exports valued at RM61.79bil in 2024, a 15% increase from 2023, and maintaining the number one position in the Global Islamic Economy Index for ten consecutive years. – Bernama