KUALA LUMPUR, June 2 (Bernama) — The Bumiputera Manufacturers and Services Industry Association of Malaysia (PPIPBM) expects a good response to Malaysian halal products in China with the signing of an agreement with two Chinese supermarket chains last month.
The products wil be distributed in areas with a large Muslim population by Beijing Hualian Group Supermarket and Lianhua Group, which have a network of 106 and 6,000 supermarkets respectively.
“For example, Xining in Qinghai province, with two million Muslims and the country’s fourth highest per capita income, has three Beijing Hualian supermarkets,” PPIPBM Treasurer General Ramlan Abdul Majid told reporters after signing a memorandum of understanding with the Qinghai Chamber of Commerce and Malaysian Chinese Muslim Chamber of Commerce here Tuesday.
Nearly 40 per cent of PPIPBM’s 1,500 members are export-ready and have ventured into the Middle East market, Ramlan said, adding at least 26 Malaysian firms will be bringing their food and beverage products into China, a process expected to take up to two months.
In 2014, Malaysia exported US$1.7 billion worth of halal products to China, comprising mostly processed food, halal ingredients, and palm oil-based products.
From January to March this year, Malaysia-China trade declined to US$13.67 billion from US$14.74 billion in the same quarter in 2014.
Meanwhile, Qinghai Business Federation president Zhao Heng Lun said a showroom featuring 1,000 types of halal products from Qinghai will be opened in Malaysia.
“However, we are still at the discussion stage, we will decide on the location and time frame to execute the plan.
