For decades, the global conversation around the annual Hajj pilgrimage has been around scale. Millions of pilgrims. Vast crowds. Endless logistics. But the most meaningful transformation in recent years has been less about scale and more about the experience. 

Increasingly, the kingdom is redesigning Hajj and Umrah as a unified process that begins long before a pilgrim reaches the holy city of Makkah and continues through every stage of the pilgrim’s worship and movement.

“Saudi Arabia is building a pilgrimage system that is not only bigger, but more organized, more responsive, and more aware of the person moving through it,” says Abdulrahman Alkheraigi, communication advisor at the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah.

At its core, this evolution reflects Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 ambition to make Hajj and Umrah journeys more seamless, while preserving the sanctity of the pilgrimage itself.

“If I had to pick the single most meaningful shift, it would be the move away from a fragmented, manual system to a more integrated journey,” Mohammed Binmahfouz, founder and CEO of digital platform Umrahme tells Salaam Gateway. 

“That sounds obvious when you say it, but if you were operating in this space five or six years ago, you would know how far things have come.”

Fragmented to digital

For many pilgrims, the Hajj travel experience once began with uncertainty.

Applications were often handled through layers of intermediaries. Information could be inconsistent. Language barriers complicated planning. Pilgrims frequently relied on informal advice networks to navigate one of the most important journeys of their lives.

Saudi Arabia’s growing digital ecosystem is changing that.

Platforms such as Nusuk and Nusuk Hajj now allow pilgrims to access permits, accommodation, transportation information, and verified packages more directly. The system is still evolving, but the psychological impact is already significant.

“Better access to information, greater transparency, digital permits, and the ability to manage key parts of the journey without going through a chain of intermediaries are all significant,” says Binmahfouz, who has also worked with the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah to develop a digitalization roadmap.

“For pilgrims arriving from dozens of countries with different languages and expectations, that is more important than people outside the industry might appreciate.”

Behind the scenes, the improvements go beyond digital convenience. They reflect a broader restructuring of how the pilgrimage sector functions.

“What I find equally notable is how much work has gone into coordinating the ecosystem around the pilgrimage,” he says. “Government entities, transport providers, accommodation, health services, crowd management, and licensed operators are now working within a more joined-up framework.”

That coordination matters because Hajj remains one of the most operationally complex annual gatherings in the world.

“Hajj is unique because it’s not simply about bringing people to Makkah,” explains Binmahfouz. “It’s about safely moving very large numbers of pilgrims through a sequence of time-sensitive rituals.”

“Any improvement in flow, scheduling, medical response, transport allocation, or camp services has a direct impact on safety and comfort.”

The invisible infrastructure of care

Many of the biggest improvements to Hajj and Umrah are intentionally invisible.

Pilgrims may never see the command centers coordinating movement between Mina, Arafat, and Muzdalifah, holy places essential for completing Hajj rituals. They may not notice the predictive systems managing transport flows or the expanded medical preparedness operating in the background.

What they encounter instead is something simpler: shorter waits, clearer directions, and faster support when problems arise.

According to Alkheraigi, the transformation centers on reducing avoidable stress around the pilgrimage experience. “A pilgrim’s journey to Hajj rarely begins in Makkah. For many, it begins months earlier, at a desk or on a phone, with a set of questions that are practical but deeply personal.”

“How do I apply? Which package can I trust? Where will I stay? How will I move between the holy sites? What happens if I get lost, fall ill, or cannot understand the instructions around me?”

“These are not small concerns,” he adds. “For a pilgrim preparing for one of the most important journeys of a lifetime, uncertainty can weigh almost as heavily as the physical demands of Hajj itself.”

Reforms to Hajj increasingly attempt to address that anxiety. Health services, shaded areas, hydration infrastructure, emergency response systems, multilingual guidance, and accessibility measures have all expanded over the past few years. 

At the two Holy mosques located in Makkah and Medinah, new services — including interactive maps, free luggage storage, and childcare centers — are intended to improve comfort and peace of mind.

“I would also highlight the growing attention given to elderly pilgrims and people with disabilities,” says Binmahfouz. “Better accessibility, dedicated support services, wheelchair arrangements, improved mobility planning, and stronger medical readiness are all contributing to a more dignified and inclusive journey.”

One of the latest initiatives involves the deployment of 6,000 wheelchairs and 400 electric carts throughout the Grand Mosque to facilitate the movement of worshippers.

Language access has also become a critical layer of the infrastructure.

“Multilingual guidance, translation tools, and wider access to the Arafat sermon have helped worshippers feel less isolated in the crowd,” says Alkheraigi. “To understand what’s being said, where to go, and what comes next is not merely a practical advantage; it allows a pilgrim to remain calm enough to focus on worship.”

Building a resilient ecosystem

The overhaul of Hajj and Umrah services is closely tied to Saudi Arabia’s larger tourism ambitions.

In 2025, the Kingdom recorded over 122 million domestic and international tourists, a 5% increase year-on-year. The figure included nearly 19.5 million Hajj and Umrah pilgrims arriving from abroad.

That growth is changing how the ecosystem connects to the wider Saudi economy.

“The broader destination picture matters too,” says Binmahfouz. “AlUla, Jeddah, Riyadh, Taif, Asir, the Red Sea, Diriyah, and the Eastern Province are all part of a wider story. Visitors increasingly have reason to experience more of the kingdom.”

Projects led by the Royal Commission for Makkah City and Holy Sites and the Madinah Region Development Authority are also reshaping how pilgrims experience historic and religious landmarks beyond the core rituals, according to Binmahfouz. 

Among them is the recently rehabilitated 157-kilometer Badr Historical Path west of Madinah, designed to revive sites connected to prophetic history.

Meanwhile, infrastructure projects such as the Haramain High Speed Railway and the Makkah Route Initiative have improved connectivity and reduced congestion.

The Makkah Route has emerged as one of the kingdom’s most consequential reforms. The program allows visitors to complete visa processing, health checks, and baggage coding at airports in their home countries before flying to Saudi Arabia and proceeding to their accommodations without lengthy arrival procedures. Since its launch in 2017, the initiative has served more than 1.2 million pilgrims.

The next phase: Delivering a seamless experience

Despite the progress, industry leaders argue that the next phase of reform will be harder.

The challenge is no longer building infrastructure. It’s connecting the ecosystem so thoroughly that pilgrims barely notice the systems supporting them.

“The biggest opportunity right now is consistency,” Binmahfouz says. “The journey still has uneven patches depending on the arrival point, the operator, transport connectivity, guide quality, and how well services are coordinated on the ground.”

He argues that many operators continue to depend on traditional coordination methods that can create fragmentation during critical stages of the journey.

“Many businesses still rely heavily on manual processes and WhatsApp coordination,” he says. “Giving them proper digital tools for bookings, operations, supplier management, VAT-compliant invoicing, dynamic packaging, and guest support would raise the quality floor of the ecosystem noticeably.”

Artificial intelligence and predictive analytics are expected to play a larger role in the years ahead.

“There’s the longer-term opportunity around data and AI,” Binmahfouz says. “Predictive crowd management, smarter transport allocation, service monitoring, accessibility planning, personalised itinerary building, and real-time guest support will all matter more as the system becomes better connected.”

Still, both industry and government voices insist the future of pilgrimage services cannot be judged solely by technology or infrastructure.

For pilgrims, success is often measured in subtle ways. It’s finding the right bus without panic. Understanding instructions in a familiar language. Reaching the rites safely. Resting in shade. Receiving help before confusion becomes fear.

“The future of Hajj and Umrah services will not be judged only by the scale of infrastructure or the sophistication of technology,” Alkheraigi says.

“For pilgrims, success is felt in smaller, more immediate ways.”

The true test of any thriving society is its impartial treatment of all who call it home and its ability to evolve and adapt over time in line with the needs of its people. Sometimes, these needs can be as mundane as everyday feeding decisions, which, under extreme situations, can require breakthrough solutions. 

In war zones and disaster areas, food can become a serious problem for Muslim soldiers and refugees. The US Military's packaged, ready-to-eat meals (MREs) were a huge success when they were first introduced during the Second World War. They were built to last a long time without going bad.

But as more people of different faiths, specifically Muslims, joined the armed forces, the question of a lack of halal-certified meat or chicken options in the standard MREs became an issue.
 

The US military tried to fix this by offering "pork-free" versions, thinking that would solve the problem. But it didn't because the underlying issues weren't being addressed. Even the vegetarian meals caused issues, because they contained ingredients that Muslims aren't allowed to eat — things like additives made from animals, artificial flavors with questionable sources, and food made in facilities where everything gets mixed together.

For Muslim service members, refugees, and people of faith, every meal became a difficult choice between staying fed and staying true to their beliefs. In the past, Muslims stuck in these tough situations could fall back on an Islamic rule called Darurah, which basically means "extreme necessity." This rule allows a Muslim to eat forbidden food if they are literally in danger of starving. 

But the rule was meant for extreme situations and raised another dilemma: should a soldier or anyone serving their country, or a person fleeing a disaster, really have to break their religious rules just to survive? Or go without food for a long time?

The answer was clearly no. It was obvious that the rule of Darurah wasn't a permanent solution. For a long-term solution, there had to be a way to create a proper, fully certified halal meal that could survive on a battlefield or in a disaster zone. And once that was achieved, then to convince the government to buy and use it.

This was too big a goal for any single entity or individual to achieve on its own. It took a historic team effort between a forward-thinking food entrepreneur, My Own Meals, Inc. (MOM), and a religious and scientific organization, the Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America (IFANCA).
 

A bold idea: Mary Anne Jackson and ‘My Own Meals’

Military labs are all about finding quick stop-gap solutions; they don't have the bandwidth or the deep technical knowledge that is required to formulate a solution for a halal MRE. Instead, it was the foresight and enterprise of a regular civilian businesswoman. In the 1980s, Mary Anne Jackson, who had previously worked as a senior food industry executive, started a company called My Own Meals, Inc. (MOM), along with its halal division, J&M Food Products Company.

Jackson was ahead of her time. She adopted technology used by the US military — a process in which food is sealed in flexible foil pouches and cooked under high pressure so it lasts for years without needing a fridge — and applied it to create everyday meals for consumers. Over time, she added foil pouches and individual plastic meal trays to her product range. This type of long-lasting, no-fridge-needed meal didn't yet exist in regular American stores, so Jackson had to work hard to convince people that this new packaging was safe to eat.

As conflicts and wars began to escalate in the early 1990s, the US Defense Logistics Agency — the part of the military that handles supplies — was struggling to find enough meals that met religious dietary requirements. Instead of waiting around for the military to lower its standards or force Muslim soldiers to compromise, Jackson decided to act.

She had the vision to understand that real halal food couldn't just be a label slapped on a package — it had to be truly and completely halal, from top to bottom. 

To make something that Muslim soldiers and refugees could eat with full confidence in their faith, she knew she needed expert religious guidance. So she reached out to IFANCA.

The hard part: Making a meal that's both long-lasting and truly halal

While all the pieces were now in place, the partnership between J&M Food Products and IFANCA still faced a massive challenge. Making a halal MRE meant going through every single part of the meal-making process and checking it against Islamic food rules — right down to the tiniest ingredients.

To make a meal that could last five years in extreme conditions like deserts or war zones, IFANCA and Jackson's team had to solve several big problems:

• Getting rid of questionable ingredients: The high-heat cooking process used to preserve MREs destroys many plant-based ingredients, which normally forces manufacturers to use additives derived from animals — such as certain fats, gels, and enzymes. All of these had to be carefully swapped out for plant-based versions or thoroughly checked against synthetic alternatives that could survive the intense heat without breaking down.
   
• Keeping the equipment clean and separate: MREs are made in huge factories that run nonstop. IFANCA, being well aware of the sensitive nature of the task at hand, put strict rules in place to make sure the giant pressure cookers and sealing machines used for halal meals were completely separated from the machines used for non-halal meals. This was to make sure there was zero chance — not even a tiny amount — of cross-contamination or mixing between halal and non-halal food.
   
• Checking everything in the package: IFANCA didn't cut corners or focus only on the big picture by looking at the main meal alone. They checked every single item inside the sealed MRE bag — the drink powders, the small accessory packets, and even the industrial oils used on the packaging machines — to ensure everything met Islamic standards.

A historic achievement

Thanks to Jackson's careful engineering and IFANCA's deep knowledge of Islamic law applied to modern food science, the final result was a historic achievement that cannot be overstated. J&M Food Products successfully created meat-based combat meals that met strict halal slaughter standards, as well as vegetarian meals that earned a rare double certification — both fully halal (certified by IFANCA) and fully kosher at the same time.

This breakthrough changed military food supply worldwide. The US military now had proper, long-lasting halal MREs for Muslim soldiers serving abroad. And beyond the military, these meals set the standard for disaster relief too — whenever a natural disaster or conflict forces Muslim communities from their homes, these fully certified meals can be sent in right away, giving people both the food they need to survive and the peace of mind that comes from knowing their faith is respected.
 

A legacy that goes beyond emergency rules

The story of the halal MRE shows what can happen when a bold business leader and a knowledgeable religious organization work together with purpose. Mary Anne Jackson understood the power of faith and how properly prepared meals can nourish and feed people, bring people together, and make a nation stronger and more united.

So, to achieve her goal, she actively sought out the religious expertise needed to make it something Muslims could truly trust.

Together, MOM and IFANCA proved that Islamic food laws don't have to be a roadblock to modern technology. By cracking the challenge of long-lasting food preservation, they made sure that even in the toughest places on Earth, a Muslim soldier or refugee never has to choose between staying alive and staying true to their faith.

Even though it is a predominantly Catholic country of approximately 113 million, of which Muslim households made up around 6.4%, the Philippine government has intensified its policy and institutional support for the global halal market since 2024.

Two major initiatives represent a shift from ambition to organized execution: the Philippine Halal Industry Development Strategic Plan 2024–2028 and the National Halal Industry and Development Office (NHIDO).

The policy framework
The strategic plan, unveiled in 2024, sets targets to double the number of halal-certified products and services from around 3,000 to 6,000, create 120,000 jobs, and attract P230 billion (roughly $4 billion) in investment across the four-year plan period to 2028. 
 

To ensure that halal development is treated as a cross-cutting economic project rather than a single ministry's brief, a nine-agency task force oversees it, with NHIDO serving as the implementation body.

The office serves as the central coordinating body for all halal development work across the country, simplifying certification for micro, small, and medium enterprises, building halal trade hubs across Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, partnering with local government units on halal-compliant infrastructure, and managing a comprehensive halal industry database. Certification bottlenecks have historically been one of the biggest barriers for small Filipino producers entering the halal market. NHIDO's explicit mandate to tackle this is one of the more practically important elements of the agenda as a whole.

The scope of both initiatives deliberately extends beyond food. Halal-compliant tourism, Islamic finance, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and modest fashion are all named as part of the framework, though the degree of implementation varies across these sectors.

The broader framing is a deliberate policy choice: it repositions halal from a niche of religious compliance into an economy-wide growth sector, driven by international buyers who associate halal certification with safety, hygiene, and ethical production standards.

From strategy to street level
The Manila Halal Festival in March 2026 was a litmus test, illustrating how the policy is beginning to translate into ground-level commercial activity. Around 100 vendors, most specializing in food, snacks, sweets, and supplements, gathered in the capital for a three-day event co-organized by the city government, the Department of Tourism, and the DTI. The exhibitor list included producers of halal pastillas, the Philippines' first certified halal ice cream, beauty products, and food supplies, alongside certification bodies, government agencies, and international pavilions from Indonesia and Canada.

The festival made visible how halal certification is already functioning as a market entry credential for small Filipino producers. Vendors at the event reported gaining new customer segments in the Gulf specifically because of certification, families buying to bring products to Qatar or Saudi Arabia, and export orders to the UAE that began with a single overseas inquiry. The pattern was consistent across food categories: certification opens a door that was previously closed, and Gulf demand is pulling Filipino products through it.

These were small businesses, not export-ready multinationals. But that was precisely the point the 2024–2028 plan is built around: if certification infrastructure is accessible and internationally recognized, SMEs can compete in Gulf markets without the scale that currently makes it difficult. 

"The Philippine halal industry is now aggressively developing its place in a trillion-dollar global industry — building the full halal ecosystem from farm to plate," said Ismail Abaya, Founder and President of 1Halal Global Inc. and Executive Vice President of MASLAHA Halal Certification Board Inc.

The same sentiment was later echoed by Grace Aguilar, Founder and President of Halal Expo Philippines, in an interview with Salaam Gateway. "The Philippines is emerging as one of Southeast Asia's most promising halal markets, driven by strong government support, growing consumer awareness, and increasing interest from both local and international investors. With its strategic location, young population, and commitment to becoming a global halal hub, the country offers tremendous opportunities across food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, tourism, and Islamic finance. Halal Expo Philippines was created to serve as the platform that connects businesses, fosters partnerships, and accelerates the growth of the halal ecosystem in the Philippines and beyond, " she said. 

The sectoral depth
Beyond food, the government is simultaneously building out the halal ecosystem in several directions. The Department of Tourism has accredited over 42 Muslim-friendly accommodation establishments, including major hotel groups and resorts. Infrastructure investments include the Marhaba Boracay Cove, an 800-square-meter beach area designed for Muslim travelers, with similar facilities planned for Bohol and Cebu. A QR-code-based Muslim-friendly travel log is in development to help visitors locate halal food, prayer spaces, and services.

The Philippine Economic Zone Authority is creating dedicated halal economic zones, and the central bank, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, is strengthening the Islamic banking sector to provide the financial infrastructure the wider halal industry requires. A collaboration with Turkey on halal-certified poultry production is also underway, to develop a regional hub that leverages Turkish expertise in animal-byproduct-free feed.

On the trade side, the Philippines has been promoting its halal sector at expos in Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, and Canada, and has reported export deals from its international halal promotion campaigns. However, the exact figures have not been corroborated by a single primary source.

Officials are also pursuing mutual recognition arrangements with Muslim-majority countries to ease market access for Philippine products, a critical step given that international recognition of certification bodies is often the deciding factor in whether export opportunities open up.

The challenge is execution at scale
The policy framework is more coherent than anything the Philippines has attempted in this space before. The combination of a four-year plan, a dedicated coordinating office, MSME support infrastructure, tourism investment, and export promotion is a genuine strategy rather than a collection of disconnected announcements.

The Philippines still has a relatively small certified product base — 3,000 products is modest against regional competitors — and the certification system needs to expand and gain broader international recognition quickly enough to meet the 2028 targets. The domestic Muslim population provides a domestic market foundation, but the harder task is building export supply chains, securing recognition of standards, and developing production capacity to compete internationally.

There’s a particular relief in finding a snack you can eat without checking every ingredient. The growth of halal snack brands reflects that demand. This list focuses on some of the popular snack brands among Muslim consumers globally.

Mamee-Double Decker — Malaysia

Founded in 1971 and headquartered in Melaka, Mamee-Double Decker is among the most widely distributed dedicated halal snack brands in the world.The brand's snack portfolio includes Mister Potato chips, Corntoz corn snacks, and Double Decker biscuits.

Halal certification: JAKIM (Malaysia) — Malaysia's Department of Islamic Development.

Saffron Road (Chickpea snacks line) — United States

Founded in 2009 by Adnan Durrani and based in Connecticut, the brand positioned itself as a premium, ethical, world cuisine snack and frozen food company. The brand appeared on the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing private companies in 2015 and 2016.

Halal certification: IFANCA — the Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America.

Al Rifai — Lebanon

Founded in Beirut in 1948 as a home-based roasted nut operation, the company has grown into what it describes as the largest snacking nut retailer in the Middle East, with around 40 percent market share in Lebanon. 

Halal certification: Products are composed of inherently permissible ingredients (nuts, dried fruits, plant-based snacks); no pork derivatives or alcohol in the core range. 

National Food Industries — UAE 

Founded in 1977 with a single packing machine in Dubai, National Food Industries has grown into one of the leading snack manufacturers in the Middle East. Its brand portfolio includes Mr Krisps, Emirates Pofaki, Mr Pofak, Doodles, Bakeman's, and Sinbad. According to the company's own website, NFI has expanded to over 35 countries. 

Halal certification: HACCP and Halal certified, as confirmed on the brand's own website and its Dubai Exports accreditation.

Ülker — Turkiye

Ülker is Turkiye's dominant biscuit, chocolate, and confectionery brand, founded in 1944 in Istanbul. According to its Wikipedia entry and its parent company Pladis's brand page, Ülker products are exported to 110 countries. 

Halal certification: All production adheres to halal food standards per Pladis/Ülker's own published statements; Turkiye's domestic food production is governed by standards consistent with halal requirements.

Munchy's — Malaysia

Munchy's has been producing biscuits, wafers, and crackers out of Malaysia since 1991. Its core range — butter cookies, cream-filled wafers, chocolate biscuits, and oat-based crackers — fills supermarket shelves across Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Indonesia, and Thailand, while export operations extend to the Middle East, the UK, and Australia.

Halal certification: JAKIM (Malaysia).

Hunter Foods — UAE 

Founded in 1985 and headquartered in Dubai's Jebel Ali Free Zone, Hunter Foods exports to over 60 countries. Its brand portfolio spans Hunter's Gourmet, Hunter, Safari, Aladin, and Ali Baba, covering hand-cooked potato chips, vegetable chips, quinoa chips, and organic superfoods. The Hunter's Gourmet premium range — known for its truffle and specialty flavours — is stocked in airline minibars, luxury hotel chains, and premium retailers across its export markets. 

Halal certification: Halal-certified since 2017, alongside HACCP and ISO 22000, as confirmed on the brand's website.

Chips Oman (Ali Shaihani Food Industries) — Oman 

Chips Oman traces its origins to 1989, when Al Jufair Food Industries emerged from the bifurcation of Ali Shaihani Food Industries. Its flagship product — chilli-flavoured potato chips — has become one of the most recognisable snacks across Oman and the wider Gulf, instantly identifiable by its red-and-blue packaging. Distribution spans the GCC, with diaspora reach into international markets through specialist retailers. 

Halal certification: Produced in Oman under GCC food safety regulations, which embed halal compliance as a baseline standard for domestic food manufacturing.
 

Al Rifai Arabia — Kuwait / Saudi Arabia

Not to be confused with Lebanon's Al Rifai, Al Rifai Arabia is a separate Gulf-based brand — originally Kuwaiti-operated — that has been producing roasted nuts, seeds, and dried fruits for the Gulf market for decades. It operates retail outlets across Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the UAE, Egypt, and Jordan, and its products are available through international shipping. 

Halal certification: Inherently halal product range (roasted nuts, seeds, dried fruits) produced under GCC food safety regulations.

Ziba Foods — United States

Ziba Foods occupies a specific and increasingly popular corner of the halal snack market: premium, clean-label dried fruit and nut snacks with an Afghan and Central Asian provenance. Founded by a partnership of American and Afghan entrepreneurs, the brand produces dried pomegranate arils, figs, nut mixes, and fruit-and-nut packs sourced from Afghan farms, with no artificial colours, flavours, or preservatives.

Halal certification: Vegan-certified; products are inherently permissible by ingredient composition but do not currently carry a published third-party halal certificate.

 

Methodology

To build a credible and reproducible list, this article uses a hierarchy of publicly verifiable signals.

• Countries of retail distribution (primary metric): The clearest available measure of a snack brand's global reach is the number of national markets in which its products physically appear. This is verifiable through brand websites, stockist pages, and distributor announcements, though it is worth noting that companies do not all use the same counting standards. A brand present in 100 countries through one large distributor is not the same as one embedded in 100 national retail networks. The metric is directional, not precise.
   
• Number of confirmed retail stockist locations (secondary metric): Where publicly confirmed figures are available — for instance, a brand documented as stocking in over 5,000 shops or 20,000 retail locations — this helps differentiate brands with similar geographic spread.
   
• Credibility and duration of halal certification (tertiary metric): Brands with documented third-party halal certification from recognised bodies rank above brands where certification is self-declared, implicit, or absent. The certification body for each brand is cited from its own public documentation. 
   

• A small number of entries on this list consist entirely of plant-based ingredients — nuts, dried fruits, seeds — that are inherently permissible under Islamic law regardless of whether a formal certificate has been issued. This is a recognised category in Islamic food jurisprudence and is distinct from vegan certification, which carries no Islamic legal weight on its own. Brands in this sub-category are included only where they are meaningfully embedded in Muslim food culture — through founder background, primary market, or cultural use — not simply because their ingredient list happens to be permissible. Each such entry notes the absence of third-party certification explicitly.

* Note: For this list, “snack brand” is used broadly to include packaged sweet and savoury snacks, crisps, biscuits, crackers, snack bars, nuts, seeds, dried fruit, popcorn, and confectionery. Brands whose relevant halal range is mainly frozen meals, cooking sauces, staples, or pantry ingredients are excluded unless they also have a distinct packaged snack line with meaningful retail distribution.

The US-Iran conflict has once again laid bare the vulnerability of global energy markets. Oil prices have touched historical highs in sustained rallies, touching highs of $120 per barrel as concerns regarding the situation grew. 

Major concerns swirl around the fate of the Strait of Hormuz; an important waterway for about 20% of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas. Any disruptions on this route in the past have historically caused huge oil price spikes, demonstrating how important Middle Eastern energy exports continue to be for the global economy. 

As governments throughout the Gulf and North Africa continue to grapple with what appears to be an evolving situation, one thing that the conflict has reinforced undoubtedly is the strategic consideration to reduce reliance on oil and gas for energy generation. Not only would that protect export revenues but also improve long-term energy security. 

Why renewables make economic sense

Solar energy generation makes a compelling economic case in the Middle East, home to some of the most abundant and consistent solar irradiation (over 2000 kw-h per m2 per year), according to the Middle East Solar Industry Association. 

Due to the success of large-scale renewable energy projects, electricity prices have reached all-time lows. The Al Dhafra photovoltaic solar project in Abu Dhabi, which became operational in 2023, was able to obtain a tariff of 1.35 cents per kilowatt-hour, making it one of the lowest prices for solar power recorded in history. Furthermore, the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) suggests that 91% of new renewable energy projects commissioned in 2024 were most cost effective than fossil fuel alternatives.

The demand for electricity is on the rise, necessitating increased production from renewable sources. The International Energy Agency (IEA) forecasts electricity demand in the Middle East to soar by about 50% by 2035 due to population growth, industrial development, and the increased need for air conditioning - which already accounts for around 25% of annual electricity usage and almost 50% of peak electricity usage.

At present, a large part of this demand is satisfied through local heavy fuel oil (HFO) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) use. By way of example, Saudi Arabia uses an average of about 1.1 million barrels per day for electricity generation and desalinated water production; however, this consumption can exceed 1.4 million barrels per day during the hottest summer months, which diverts a considerable amount of liquids away from export markets.

If small amounts of local oil and gas consumption deployed for energy production were to be replaced with solar and wind energy, it would result in greater quantities of hydrocarbons available for export, boost state coffers and reduce the region's exposure to volatile fuel prices.

Financing the transition
The growth of renewable energy capacity throughout the region is happening at a rapid pace: Saudi Arabia's National Renewable Energy Programme aims to generate 59GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030, while the UAE is developing the 5GW Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, and Egypt has joined the pack with its 1.6GW Benban Solar Park.

According to the Middle East Solar Industry Association's Solar Outlook Report, the total solar capacity of the Middle East and North Africa region will exceed 180GW by 2030. This expansion is increasingly relying upon Islamic capital markets for financing. Global ESG sukuk issuances surpassed $18.5 billion in 2025, increasing by over 60% over the previous 12-month period, according to Fitch Ratings. 

What still stands in the way

Electric grids throughout the Middle East were created based on large fossil-fuel power plants, and the rising use of solar and wind energy will require upgrades to existing electrical transmission networks, energy storage systems and electricity pricing and market rules.

While there is still a relatively low percentage of total electric generation using renewable energy in many Gulf countries, it is likely that fossil fuels will remain part of the Gulf region's energy mix for many more years; at least, until renewable sources replace them.

Nonetheless, there is no doubt that the current geopolitical crisis emphasizes how critical it is for countries to diversify their sources of energy supply. Countries that rely primarily on renewable sources are at lower risk of being impacted by sudden changes in energy prices given disruption of oil supply routes resulting from continuing tensions with Iran.

As Middle Eastern economies wean their infrastructure away from fossil fuels and towards renewables, energy will be used as an asset, not only to help the country deal with any geopolitical issues, but also to retain their position as important global suppliers of energy. 

The debut of Canadian-produced animated film Time Hoppers: The Silk Road in Saudi cities of Riyadh and Jeddah late last year reflected a growing global appetite for Muslim-centered storytelling.

Developed by Milo Productions Inc., an Alberta-based production house and the media company behind MuslimKids.TV, the film celebrates the Golden Age of Islam and spotlights figures such as Al-Khwarizmi, Ibn al-Haytham, Maryam al-Astrolabi, and Mansa Musa.

Curated in collaboration with US distributor Fathom Entertainment, Time Hoppers is part of a broader multimedia franchise that includes a game, a TV series, and a planned sequel.

It was released in over 200 theaters across the MENA region, and is set to hit more than than 500 screens in the US, the UK, and Canada - becoming the first Muslim animated film to receive a nationwide US release.

Salaam Gateway's Heba Hashem spoke with Michael Milo and Flordeliza Dayrit, the husband-and-wife duo and co-founders of Milo Productions, about their experience in bringing this project to life and what comes next.

What do you think has been key to Time Hoppers reaching this level of success?

Milo: On the commercial side, I think we're being considered a bit of a test case. The theatre industry understands that there is a very large, untapped audience of Muslim viewers out there, and they may look to the success of the Korean or Latin American animation industry and consider that Muslims are a quarter of the world’s population. Turkish cinema has done very well internationally. So why don't we see what's available and whether we can open new markets or revenue streams and get this audience into the theatres more.

I think that could be part of the reason. Of course, the quality of the movie is there, and the story is there. All of that is also very strong. 

How has the response been so far? What are people saying?

Dayrit: We were at the American International University. We had lunch with the administration executives after the viewing, and they were thanking me for representing the Muslim culture and history so well in the movie. They said, “This is what we've been waiting for”.

Another interesting moment and what so far was the biggest reward for me was seeing a little boy come up to us; he didn't know who we were, but he was so excited and talked about the movie. 

Michael asked him who his favourite character was in the movie. He showed us a poster he had of Time Hoppers and said, “All of them. I love all of them.” And then he started naming each character. For me, the reward of all of this is when you see children as young as four and five, able to relate to the superheroes of the movie. 

That’s exciting, and it must feel incredibly rewarding. So, what’s next on your agenda?

Dayrit: We really wanted to showcase the contributions of Muslims and Arab scholars throughout time; that’s something we want to continue doing.

In North America, the representation of Muslim and Arab children is very low. A study from few years ago revealed that just 1% of Muslim Arabs and Southeast Asians were represented in children's media, and for Arabs it was only one character, and that too a supporting one. 

In Alberta where we are based, the pioneers of that Canadian province are actually Muslim Arabs. They were entrepreneurs and were competing with Hudson's Bay Company as traders at that time. For them not to be represented in local media is unusual. In Edmonton, the capital of Alberta, the number of Muslims is quite large. And it’s a similar situation across Canada, the United States, and Australia.

What we're doing with Time Hoppers is a franchise. We have the game, the movie, and we're going to be releasing a TV series, which is almost complete. We also have a plan for a sequel. We would definitely like to see investors and people in the field join us on this journey – we welcome the opportunity to produce it with us.

What challenges did you encounter while producing Time Hoppers, especially considering that you were aiming for an international audience?

Milo: One of the challenges is that you're doing children's content. For example, in Turkey and Southeast Asia, especially Malaysia, the industry is very well developed. But in the MENA region, kids’ content isn't as well developed, so it takes a lot of convincing for distributors to bet on the content and know it will resonate with audiences. 

Another challenge is that much of the children's industry is built around big-name brands, such as Barbie and Disney. These brands have the pockets to develop a massive franchise, whereas an independent like a David and Goliath type of story may be high risk, but also high reward if it does take off.

So, from our perspective, you're battling against that perception in the market that this isn't necessarily going to [take off], and that it's a lot more difficult to earn money off of an independent product or a newly released product. It's harder convincing people to get behind it. But then there are those people who believe that this is higher risk, but also higher reward.

When it comes to the subject matter, one approach in the animation industry is to make it as generic as possible because that's going to be able to sell a lot wider.

For us, we look at the successes of the Korean animation industry, they're unapologetic about their culture, and the Turkish successes as well. They don't try to make their culture generic; they represent who they are. We wanted to do that in the kids’ space.

Kids are open minded. They don't mind seeing things that are different and learning from them, and they like to see a reflection of themselves in the content they are watching. 

There’s clearly an appetite for something different. And the fact that you're creating a franchise around Time Hoppers is impressive. Is the game available already?

Dayrit: Yes, it's available via iOS, Android and Steam. We want children to get to know more about the characters, the superheroes, and to be one of them, but also get to learn about Muslim and Arab scholars and scientists.

The sky's the limit really when you consider what you can build with an Islamic values-driven media franchise, right?

Milo: Yes. There are over two billion Muslims around the world, yet it's an untapped market. If we want to capitalize on that potential, it does require investment to make an impact. That’s one of our aspirations.