Dubai, the Gulf’s halal hub?

When the Gulfood Manufacturing trade show meets in Dubai in late October, halal food will be at the top of the menu. More than 50 companies from the halal sector are due to attend, making it the second-largest segment represented (the largest being the dairy ingredients sector). Add in companies that specialize in packaging, processing, transport – and other consumer brands with an interest in the sector – and you have a healthy halal industry in the Gulf.

What might be unexpected is that most of the food at the show is from outside the region. With a climate that makes it difficult to grow crops and raise livestock, the six countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) rely heavily on imports. The sugar and poultry they consume may come from Brazil, the fruit and vegetables from Nigeria and the beef and dairy products from Australia.

“Apart from Malaysia, Indonesia and Turkey, Muslim countries are not big halal producers. The big players are non-Muslim countries in Europe, South America, China, India and New Zealand,” says Grégory Bajeux, general manager of Global Halal Logistics, a French firm that transports halal products around the world.