Malaysia is calling all new and established companies in the halal industry to look to Malaysia as the centre for global networking, successful business deals and knowledge enhancement for the Halal industry. The call comes as the country prepares to host the 16th Malaysia International Halal Showcase (Mihas) from April 3 to 6, 2019. Mihas is organised by Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation (Matrade), Malaysia’s trade promotion agency.

Dubbed the Olympics of Halal products and services, the congregation of world players at Mihas will promote the growth of Halal beyond just Food & Beverages (F&B) sector. Other key sectors highlighted at the trade fair include pharmaceutical, cosmetics, Muslim friendly tourism, digital and e-commerce, logistics, and Islamic Finance.

Other than business meetings, Mihas 2019 will offer quality networking and learning opportunities through spacious and improved experiential zones and industry-renowned fora as well as talks by experts from various Halal industries. Through these activities, exhibitors and visitors will be able to maintain their competitive edge in global standards. New companies which are aiming to expand will learn new experience through the increasing network.

After more than a decade, Mihas has become a yearly awaited grand network session amongst the Halal-certified and trade-ready companies, buyers, leading brands, manufacturers, distributors and high-quality suppliers towards building positive relationships which is a key in doing business in Southeast Asia.

With the growing spending power of not only Muslims but non-Muslims too, Halal poses a great business prospect for consumers that look for high quality and reliable products or services. 63 per cent of the global Muslim population resides in Asia Pacific, and Indonesia and Malaysia accounted for over 55 per cent of this region’s demand in 2016.

Malaysia’s Halal industry continues to lead the Global Islamic Economy Indicator for the fifth year in a row. This follows Thomson Reuters projection in its latest State of The Global Islamic Economy Report 2017/18 which forecasts that the potential size of the Muslim market will reach $3.081 trillion by 2022. Total Muslim spend across lifestyle sectors already represents nearly 12 per cent of global expenditure.

In boosting the trade of Halal among world economies, Mihas will feature a highly effective sourcing platform called International Sourcing Programme that has since 2005, recorded over $4.4 billion in cumulative trade for its participants.

Over the past 15 years, world companies have been looking to the exhibition to find the latest Halal product offerings and services across the Halal industry value chains.

The main participating countries at Mihas include Indonesia, the Philippines, South Korea, Japan, China, Belgium, Iran, France, India, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey and many more.