Pakistan has the potential to become a hub of global Halal food as being a 100 percent Halal production base, it enjoys direct access to millions of consumers in Afghanistan, Central Asia and Middle East.
This was stated by Dr Fehmida Mirza, Speaker National Assembly of Pakistan while addressing the first 'Global Halal Congress', jointly organised by Halal Development Council and Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP), here at a local hotel on Saturday.
Dr Fehmida said that with a little investment and effort in the sector of dairy, livestock and agriculture, Pakistan could have a major share in the global export of Halal items, she said. On the occasion, she announced that she would support Halal Certification Bill if it were tabled in National Assembly.
Addressing the congress, Tariq Iqbal Puri, Chief Executive TDAP said that availability of Halal food, from fresh meat to value added/processed food, is increasingly visible in many countries of European Union (EU), and European supermarket giants like Carrefour and Auchan, Sainsbury, etc are now aggressively pursuing the food retailing.
He further said 95 percent of all New Zealand lamb exports are now Halal, while non-Halal production is being phased out. The Port of Rotterdam is currently creating a "Halal District Park" to serve 30 million Muslims in Europe. Besides major American companies for example Cargill, ConAgra, Tyson, Oscar Mayer all have Halal product lines, he maintained.
Iqbal Puri hoped that Pakistan, with a little effort, could be in a position to venture out boldly in the Halal economic arena and stake out a respectable share of the global Halal market. The congress was also attended/addressed by Mir Hazar Khan Bijrani, Federal Minister for Industries and Production, Haji Abdul Malik Kassim, Minister of State for Trade, Religious Affairs and Consumer Affairs, Malaysia, Dr Mustufa Ceric the Grand Mufti of Bosnia Sanjak, Croatia and Slovenia and others.