Almost No Muslim Country Among Top 10 Halal Product Exporters

Most of the top 10 exporting countries of  Halal products globally are non-Muslim states.  It must be a wake-up call for Muslims as most of the Halal food they consume is produced and exported by non-Muslim countries.  According to recent estimates, almost 85% of Halal food consumed by Muslims worldwide is made in countries where Muslims are in a minority.

Around 2 billion Muslims are living on the face of the earth. A vast majority of them eat Halal only. Yet, we do not find any significant Muslim brands effectively catering to their Halal needs.

According to Aljazeera, the Halal-certified food and beverage industry is estimated at $415bn. But, most of these products come from non-Muslim majority countries. Although, Turkey, Somalia, and Sudan export Halal meat to other Muslim countries, their overall Halal market share is negligible.

We do not see any global Halal brands managed by any Muslim-majority countries.  The top five countries exporting Halal meat to the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) countries are Brazil at $16.2 billion; India at $14.4 billion; the USA at $13.8 billion; Russia at $11.9 billion; and Argentina at $10.2 billion, according to the State of the Global Islamic Economy Report 2020-2021—an annual study produced by US-based research organization Dinar Standard and supported by Dubai Islamic Economy Development Centre.

According to the latest statistics, Brazil is the largest Halal meat exporter while Thailand is the largest Halal processed food exporter in the world.  The 15% of the global Halal food Muslims produce largely comes from Indonesia, Malaysia, and Turkey.

Related Articles: Top 4 Ways To Compete With Bigger Halal Brands

  Is Your Brand Ready To Serve Muslim Consumers?

Top Importers of Halal Meat

Saudi Arabia is the largest importer of Halal-certified meat. The top Halal meat foreign buyers are listed below in order.

1. Saudi Arabia
2. Malaysia
3. UAE
4. Indonesia
5. Egypt

Top Halal Food Suppliers

The following corporations are top Halal food suppliers to Muslims around the world. And, of course, all these corporations are majority-owned by non-Muslims.

• Nestle (A Swiss multinational)
• Carrefour (A French company)
• Walmart (An American company)
• Whole Foods (An American company)

Demand for Halal food products is increasing rapidly with the escalating population growth rate and changing socio-economic conditions in Muslim-majority countries and elsewhere.  Research has shown that Halal food is the safest food for consumption and even non-Muslims have recognized it.OIC countries can become the Kitchen of the World for Halal products as they have a huge potential to win a major share out of the total of $3 trillion in Global Halal markets.

There is a strong need to develop standards for Halal products to boost exports from Muslim-majority countries. The promotion of Halal product exports would also open up new economic opportunities and employment for the youth and traders in Muslim-majority countries. Producers outside the Muslim world, from Brazil to the US to Australia, are performing well in the Halal market and doing a roaring business even though the concept of Halal entirely belongs to Muslims.

Are Muslim-Majority Countries Ready To Take The Charge?

Partially, yes to the question as we see countries like Malaysia, Turkey, Indonesia, and UAE making efforts to increase their Halal food exports to other countries.  But, other than these and a few other countries, we do not see much activity in exporting Halal food to overseas markets. There has been a lot of talk about this issue. But, apart from these select few, only a few Muslim countries have taken serious steps to fix the issue.

What Does the Muslims Need To Do?

Do you, as a potential Halal food exporter, want to play a role in producing and exporting Halal food to the places and countries where it is needed the most?  As a first step, you may want to understand how to make your brand Halal. The next step would be to know how to market your products to Muslim consumers in different parts of the world.  Although, you target Muslims only. But every market is unique in terms of tastes, and preferences. You may also be able to get a lot of customers for your Halal products who are not yet Muslims.

• Develop universal Halal standards and strictly follow them
• Create brands that can cater to the growing needs of Muslims
• Partner with those Halal certification bodies which can help you carry your Halal brand to your target markets easily
• When you start small on the road to gaining self-sufficiency in Halal food, you may want to learn how to compete with more prominent brands.
• And, last but not least, Keep on improving the quality and packaging of your Halal product

At the end of the day, you can develop a global brand in the Halal industry and thus help grow the market share of halal brands entirely owned by Muslims only. Still, the challenge is to deliver a consistent, recognizable product no matter where you go. Are you ready to face the challenge?