It has been a tentative season for the Halal industry in Thailand as the market, worth roughly 1.29 billion US dollars has both grown and shrunk, but is now on the rise again, and expected to grow by another 6 billion US dollars over the next year. Over the last 20 years, the number of certified Halal brands has risen from a mere hundred to over 160,000 brands, generating 6,000 million US dollars through the export market alone, exporting to countries all over the world, both Muslim and non-Muslim.
“Thais need to understand that Halal is not only about the benefits of Muslim people but it is for every single living person in the world,” said Assoc. Prof. Dr Winai Dahlan, the Founder and Director of the Halal Science Center at Chulalongkorn University. “95% of the people involved in the Halal industry, from producer, entrepreneur, employees to consumers are non-Muslims, so the benefits of Halal is not only the uplifting quality of the food for Muslim but for everyone involved. Our goods are exported to 57 Muslim countries and also many other countries in Europe and North America.”
As the world’s first country to have its very own the Halal Science Centre, now the aim is to push Thailand’s Halal industry to be number one, with three institutes working tirelessly to change perspectives and upgrade the standard of Halal in the country. The Halal Science Centre at Chulalongkorn University is focusing on research and development for Halal products in Thailand while the Pattani Office is focusing on production and entrepreneurship, such as boosting up SMEs and Startups, industrial factory and agricultural. The Chiang Mai Office is in charge of the big data, developing IT networks and smart technology, aligned with the Thailand 4.0 roadmap. “Along a road leading from Jeddah towards Mecca, there is a massive billboard displaying our logo and a quote saying ‘A sign you can trust’. This is how reliable our brand is,” added Dr Winai. “The cabinet of Thailand is using our concept to lay out the master plan.”
The Halal Science Center at Chulalongkorn University and the Central Islamic Council of Thailand is working hard to pursue the vision and will be holding the Thailand Halal Assembly 2017 from November 30th to December 3rd, gathering all the networks in the Halal industry from all over the world. The event features an academic seminar with talks from various experts in related fields, business networking and a Halal standards convention. The Halal International Expo is also occurring within the event under the theme ‘Halal Wisdom: Convergence of Science, Technology and Islamic Arts’ with over 260 booths showcasing thousands of Halal products. Explore the Thailand Halal Assembly 2017 from November 30th to December 3rd at BITEC Bangna, Bangkok.
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