OVERVIEW-Italy’s halal opportunity
Photo: FLORENCE, ITALY, September 14, 2015: Florence city from the Duomo. Florence was a centre of medieval trade and finance, and is considered the birthplace of the Renaissance / Pierre-Jean Durieu / Shutterstock.com
Italy is one of the top five largest exporters in the world for agri-food products. The country has strong halal market credentials with its 2.2 million-strong Muslim population, a robust halal certification ecosystem, and $2.5 billion in food exports to Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) markets.
What are the opportunities for companies to thrive in Italy’s halal food industry?
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YOUR PAIN POINTS ADDRESSED |
ASK YOURSELF | |
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Scenario: You are a medium-sized food manufacturer operating in Italy, seeking to enter the country’s halal food market |
How attractive is Italy’s halal food industry? |
What is the size of Italy’s food industry? |
| How robust is the demand for Made in Italy halal food? | ||
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What are some key considerations for Italy’s halal food producers to address the halal opportunity globally? |
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ITALY’S HALAL MARKET
Italy’s halal market credentials are strong, underpinned by three key factors:
Strong, rapidly growing Muslim population driving demand for halal food
There are 2.2 million Muslims in Italy, constituting 3.7 percent of the total population. This large minority represents a robust market for halal food.
There is a substantial domestic market for the development of the halal food industry. Muslims in Italy are estimated to have spent $5 billion in 2015 on food and beverages, up from $4.9 billion in 2014. This is expected to reach $5.8 billion in 2021, according to the State of The Global Islamic Economy 2016/17 report.
The halal ecosystem includes more than 170 halal food outlets, including markets, restaurants, and other retail locations, according to halal restaurants and products online site Zabihah.com.
Robust regulatory ecosystem underpins halal products
The Italian halal market is made up of over 270 halal-certified companies supported by halal certification organizations including the Halal International Authority and Halal Italia.
The country’s leading halal certifier is Halal International Authority (HIA).
Founded in the early 1990s and headquartered in Bari, HIA isrecognized by Indonesia’s national certifier LPPOM MUI, and Malaysia’s JAKIM. HIA certifies products and services related to food, cosmetics, logistics, finance, pharmaceuticals, and tourism. The organization follows the “Halal Quality System,” a certification system that is compliant with international standards. Companies certified by the HIA include AromataGroup, Belladelli Srl and Colavita, Zipperle.
The Halal Italy Authority is a subsidiary of HIA.
It was established at around the same time as its parent company and has offices in Milan and Bari. The organization also certifies companies in Italy and is recognized by the Islamic High Council of Italy and Authority of Islamic studies in Italy. Companies certified by Halal Italy Authority include Agritalia Srl, Cattaneo Bros, Casillo Group, and Unigrà Srl.
Another leading certifier is Halal Italia, founded in 2010 and headquartered in Milan.
It is a voluntary certification organization that focuses on “Made in Italy” products. The organization has partnered with the Ethics Committee for Halal Certification of CO.RE.IS (Comunità Religiosa Islamica, or Islamic religious community) Italiana to provide technical guidance on halal standards and regulations. Halal Italia was accredited and recognized by MUIS, Singapore’s Islamic Religious Council. Companies certified by Halal Italia include Assofood SpA, Baldi Srl, Cogemat Srl, and D’Autore Srl.
Key exporter of food products to Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) markets
Italy has a robust trade relationship with OIC countries and exported close to $2.5 billion in food-related products to them in 2015. Its meat and live animal exports to OIC countries amounted to over $80.5 million in 2015. The biggest OIC buyers of Italy’s meat and live animals are Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Albania, and Turkey, which imported $21.4 million, $9 million, $8.8 million, and $8.1 million, respectively.
| ITALY AGRI-FOOD INDUSTRY VITAL STATS | |||
| NATIONAL AGGREGATES (2015) |
EXPORTS OF FOOD-RELATED PRODUCTS (2015) Net importer |
MEAT & LIVESTOCK (2015) Net importer |
COMPANIES & EMPLOYMENT |
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$40 billion: Agriculture sector was valued at $40 billion, or 2.2 percent of GDP (Source: National statistics) $150 billion: Estimated total sales turnover, up 1.35 percent from 2014 (Source: Italian Trade Agency) |
$40.5 billion: Exports $43.6 billion: Imports $3.1 billion: Trade deficit (Source: International Trade Centre) |
17 percent: Proportion of meat and poultry production to total agri-food production (Source: United States Department of Agriculture) $33.5 billion: Meat sector value (Source: Carni Sostenibili) $22.3 billion: Estimated turnover of largest meat sectors beef, poultry, and pork $2.3 billion: Exports $6.5 billion: Imports $4.1 billion: Trade deficit |
10 food-processing companies represented 40 percent of sector sales in 2014 (Source: United States Department of Agriculture) Notable companies: Barilla, pasta manufacturing; Galbani, one of the largest manufacturers of dairy and cured meats; Gruppo Cremonini, meat- and poultry-processing 60,000: Number of companies in food industry 380,000: The foodn industry employs over 380,000 domestically |
KEY CONSIDERATIONS
To ensure a successful venture into Italy’s halal food industry, there are several key factors that food companies must consider.
Getting certified by Italy’s leading bodies is a key step to enter OIC markets
Both the Halal Italy Authority and Halal Italia are recognized by leading and widely-respected halal certifiers, making exporting easier.
Hamid ’Abd al-Qadir Distefano, CEO of Halal Italia, told Salaam Gateway that they are recognised internationally, and added that since last year they have been following the new guidelines from the Emirates Authority for Standardization and Metrology (ESMA) to be compliant with the ISO standard. They now hope to see their recognition increase even further.
Halal a mark of quality and important for all consumers
Distefano also explained the need for high-quality halal products to be more widely available to all consumers rather than targeting a smaller Muslim market.
“It’s important to see halal food as a high-level product, and for us to improve the commercial perception of the product, including the quality of the product and the raw materials,” Addec Distefano.
Italy could benefit from the uncertainty created by Brexit
Italy has an opportunity to collaborate with leading UK brands and help them establish operations in the country to access the broader EU markets. With some 17 million Muslims in Europe, accessing the broader European market remains an added advantage for Italian producers.
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SUGGESTED ROADMAP FOR FOOD MANUFACTURERS |
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Get certified by the leading Italian certifiers. |
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Think through the marketing message and liaise with certifiers to get the best access to the broader Italian Consumer market. |
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Set up exports in OIC countries and access the global Muslim market opportunity with high-quality Italian food products. |
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Yasir Malik, DinarStandard