The Halal food business, currently valued at approximately $632 billion per annum, is poised to grow by 5.8% over the next four years, according to Global Islamic Economy Report 2015/2016. Producers of frozen food products from around the world expect to cash in on the market by catering not only to the dietary requirements of more than 1.6 billion Muslims, but also by appealing to an expanding customer base of non-Muslims concerned about food safety, hygiene and ethical quality.
The Gulfood Halal Forum, scheduled for February 22 at the Conrad Hotel in Dubai, will address a myriad of issues facing the sector. Among them will be exporting to Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries; merger and acquisition opportunities; the global call for unified Halal practices; Halal marketing and distribution strategies, with an eye on creating “superbrands” attractive to multiple consumer groups; and the role of the food industry in Dubai’s quest to be the center of the global Islamic economy.
There will be no shortage of Halal frozen products trends for Gulfood attendees to see and sample during the five-day show at the Dubai World Trade Center. The United Arab Emirates-based Al-Kabeer Group of Companies will showcase, along with many other products, retail packs of chicken burgers formed from seasoned minced meat, plus fully-cooked jumbo chicken hot dogs featuring Halal boneless chicken minced meat stuffed into casings with special hot dog seasoning at Stand 400 in Hall 4.
The proliferation of value-added chicken offerings from Al-Watania Poultry will be front and center at Stand Q-B4 in Hall Al Multaqua.
Headquartered in the Qassim region of Saudi Arabia, approximately 350 kilometers from capital city Riyadh, the company operates the largest poultry and egg production factory in the Middle East. With slaughterhouse facilities and a modern, state-of-the-art production plant in Egypt as well as in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, total processing capacity tops 820,000 chickens and 1,000,000 million eggs daily. The goal is to boost output to as many as 1,350,000 chickens per day in the near future.
Fully cooked fried chicken breast fillets are among many frozen convenience products produced with boneless meat from broiler parts slaughtered in strict accordance with Halal principles. Other items range from spicy broasted chicken and chicken burgers and nuggets to Mortadella-style sausage and other fast food items.
Al-Watania has received Gulfood’s Best Halal Food award and the Arabic Quality award, and is the first poultry company in the Arab World to obtain two ISO certificates in international standards (ISO 9001 and 9002). Moreover, it has HACCP, Food Safety (SQF) and ISO 22000-2005 certification.
Qualiko from MHP
Another exhibitor at Gulfood will be MHP, the leading producer of frozen poultry products in Ukraine with the greatest market share and highest brand recognition in the nation through the proprietary Qualiko label. Its range of packaged frozen poultry, on display at Stand S1-M35 in Hall Shk Saeed 1, runs the gamut from whole and cut broiler chicken to half-chicken breasts, thighs, wings and drumsticks, to cooked meat products. The 100% vertically integrated company slaughters poultry in strict accordance with Islamic law under the permanent control and supervision of representatives of the Halal Certification and Research Center.
Taste of the USA
The Stone Mountain, Georgia-headquartered USA Poultry & Egg Export Council (USAPEEC) has teamed up with the US Dairy Export Council (USDEC) and US Meat Export Federation (USMEF) to showcase American poultry, egg, red meat and cheese products at the Gulfood exposition.
“Our presence at Gulfood has grown substantially over the years, indicating the importance of the Middle East for US poultry and egg exports,” said USAPEEC President Jim Sumner. “This year, we’re partnering with two US export organizations to promote ‘Taste of the USA’ for the first time at Gulfood, and we are looking forward to showcasing US products to buyers and chefs.”
Dubai’s Raviz-Centre Point Hospitality Culinary Director Robin Gomes will demonstrate US beef products for USMEF, and ongoing culinary demonstrations will take place in Za’abeel Pavilion, Stand D-70, near Salon Culinaire, Sunday through Wednesday from 11:00 to 17:30.
“For many years, Gulfood has been a key marketing opportunity for US red meat exporters serving the Middle East,” said USMEF President and CEO Philip Seng. “But over time, we have also seen it mature into a truly global event, attracting buyers and other industry contacts from a very large and diverse region that includes Asia and Africa. We look forward to partnering with USAPEEC and USDEC to make Gulfood 2016 an even more effective venue for expanding US exports.”
Bathmen, Holland-headquartered Mondial Foods BV will be on the scene at Stand S1-H23 in Hall Shk Saeed 1with poultry products ranging from whole griller chicken and leg quarters to whole legs, drumsticks, wings, breast meat, thighs, shawarma, chicken franks, nuggets, burgers, turkey cuts and parts, in addition to whole griller duck and parts including feet and neck portions.
Among other suppliers of value-added frozen poultry products at fair will be the Amman, Jordan-based National Poultry Company, Emirates Modern Poultry Company of the UAE, ESS-Food AS of Denmark, Halawany Consumer Products SAL of Lebanon, Qingdao PAN-KAI Import & Export Co. of China, Widriss SAL of Lebanon, Ronsard of France, Globex International of the USA, and Riz Global Foods of Canada. – Reported by John Saulnier
