Conquering the Qatar Halal Market

Vietnam and Qatar are facing many opportunities for cooperation in developing the Halal industry, bringing benefits to both countries. The Embassy encourages Vietnamese businesses to come to study the market, directly assess local tastes and consumer trends to have appropriate business strategies.

Vietnamese Ambassador to Qatar Nguyen Huy Hiep.

That is the affirmation of Vietnamese Ambassador to Qatar Nguyen Huy Hiep in an interview with The World and Vietnam Newspaper about the opportunity for Vietnamese enterprises to conquer the Halal market in this Middle Eastern country.

Could the Ambassador tell us about the potential for cooperation between Vietnam and Qatar in developing the Halal industry?

Vietnam and Qatar are facing many opportunities for cooperation in developing the Halal industry, bringing many benefits to both countries.

As a country with a developed economy and one of the highest per capita incomes in the world, Qatar still needs to import up to 90% of its food, including Halal food, due to unfavorable natural conditions. Meanwhile, Vietnam has diverse natural conditions and abundant agricultural and food products, and can absolutely become an important partner in ensuring food security for Qatar.

Looking at the rapid growth of the Halal market today and the fact that Halal products are consumed by both Muslims and non-Muslims, Qatar is a market worth paying attention to for Vietnamese businesses. This is not only a consumer market but also a gateway and transit point to penetrate the regional market for Vietnam's Halal products, first of all food, then other products such as fashion, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, etc.

In addition to increasing Halal food exports to the Qatari and regional markets, the two countries also have potential for cooperation in the field of Halal tourism, in which Vietnam provides tourism products and services that meet Islamic standards, especially for the high-end Qatari customer segment. The Embassy has observed that the trend of tourism expanding to Southeast Asia and beyond countries familiar to Qatari visitors such as Thailand, Malaysia, etc. is becoming more popular. Therefore, Vietnam needs to be well prepared to welcome the wave of tourism from Muslim countries.

According to the Ambassador, it can be seen that there are not small opportunities for Vietnamese enterprises to approach and penetrate Qatar's Halal market?

The Halal market is growing rapidly globally, not only in Muslim countries, with the Middle East considered a region with great potential. Vietnam has many agricultural products, foods, and processed products that meet Qatar's Halal needs and standards.

The relationship between the two countries has recently seen positive developments. Our leaders have been paying much attention to strengthening multifaceted relations with the Middle East and the Gulf region, including Qatar. These are quite favorable conditions for Vietnamese enterprises to seek cooperation with Qatari partners to develop Halal products and expand the consumer market.

Besides the advantages, there are also many challenges for Vietnamese businesses wanting to conquer the market of this Middle Eastern country?

It must be recognized that Vietnam is still a fairly new name on the global Halal map, while many of our ASEAN friends, most recently Thailand, have long built up their Halal product brands.

Fortunately, in recent times, the Vietnamese Government, ministries, sectors, localities and business community have become more aware of the potential of the global Halal market and have made many efforts to standardize and unify the management of Halal certification and standards.

The establishment of the National Halal Certification Center on April 24, 2024 is an important first step to professionalize the production and export process of Vietnamese products that meet Halal standards.

For Qatar, the basic Halal standards are similar to the common standards of the Gulf countries (GCC), and for some products such as seafood, they are not as strict as the standards of Saudi Arabia. Therefore, Halal products that have entered the GCC market in the region have a much easier chance of accessing the Qatari market. Of course, obtaining Halal certification to enter Qatar or the GCC also requires careful research on the market, customer preferences, and appropriate investment of funds and human resources from businesses.

Compared to the large markets in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the market for Halal products in Qatar is smaller. However, the level of competition is no less fierce because Vietnamese enterprises have to share market share with other Middle Eastern, South Asian and Southeast Asian enterprises that have established a firm foothold here, notably companies from Syria, Lebanon, Iran, Oman, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Thailand... In this context, in addition to quality, enterprises need to consider additional factors such as price, taste diversity, design... to create competitiveness.

The Embassy encourages businesses to come to the market to research, directly assess local tastes and consumer trends to have appropriate business strategies. The Embassy always accompanies, supports, helps receive and promote quality Halal products of Vietnamese businesses to the local market.

What should Vietnamese businesses pay attention to when approaching the Qatar Halal market, Ambassador?

To approach and penetrate the Qatar market, in my opinion, Vietnamese enterprises need to pay attention to a number of issues such as: Understanding Qatar's Halal regulations and standards, local tastes and consumer habits, and business practices. Finding and building reliable partners in the area to get support in penetrating the market and building reputation for their products.

Enterprises need to invest in promoting and marketing their products to attract the attention of local consumers and Muslim immigrants, and can participate in local Halal events and exhibitions. Enterprises need to focus on thoroughly understanding the culture and religion of Qatari people and immigrant communities who need to use Halal products, ensuring product quality and food safety according to Qatari, regional and international standards.

Halal Qatar is a market worth Vietnamese businesses' attention. (Source: Getty Images)

Another factor is that to successfully export Halal products to Qatar, Vietnamese enterprises must first comply with customs regulations on import and export of goods, and food export in general to this market, including regulations on documents of origin of goods, regulations on labeling, language, etc. Qatar's regulations on food are regularly updated by the Food Safety Department, Ministry of Health, and are an important source of information that enterprises should refer to before exporting goods.

In recent times, the Embassy has researched and sent to relevant ministries and branches in the country documents such as the Guide to importing Halal food, Islamic establishments licensed to certify Halal slaughter and Halal product certification issued by the Qatar Ministry of Health. This document specifies in detail the requirements for products to ensure that they meet Halal standards when imported into Qatar, and at the same time, lists Islamic certification establishments worldwide recognized by Qatar, including those in Vietnam. Enterprises can refer to this document for more necessary and useful information when choosing suitable export products (note that Qatar's Halal standards are strictly applied to meat products and processed foods), as well as choosing a reputable Vietnamese establishment to grant Halal certification, ensuring that products can access the market.

With the above potentials and opportunities, what is the Embassy's orientation in promoting cooperation in the Halal industry between the two countries?

In the coming time, the Embassy will continue to maintain and promote cooperative relations with relevant authorities and business associations of Qatar to learn about and provide market information, local Halal regulations and standards, seek cooperation opportunities, introduce and connect Vietnamese businesses with other businesses, such as at the upcoming events Doha Coffee International Exhibition (September 26-28), Food Qatar and Qatar Halal Forum (November 12-14).

In addition, the agency will also support product promotion and introduction, promote joint cooperation projects in the Halal field, strengthen cooperation and share experiences in the production and processing of Halal products.

At the same time, the Embassy will promote the signing of documents between relevant agencies of the two countries to create a legal framework for cooperation in the Halal field, first of all between the General Department of Standards and Metrology of Vietnam and the Qatar Standards Authority.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/chinh-phuc-thi-truong-halal-qatar-284328.html