Vietnamese firms eye bigger share of trillion-dollar halal market

Held annually in Malaysia, MIHAS is considered the world’s largest halal trade exhibition.

This year’s event, organized by the Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation, is taking place from in Kuala Lumpur September 17 to 20  and brings together 300 international buyers from 50 countries, including Vietnam.

Ho Chi Minh City-based CPT Corp, a leading Vietnamese supplier of cashews and processed fruits, has brought a wide range of rice flour, glutinous rice flour, and instant flour mixes such as pancake and crispy frying batter to MIHAS 2025.

Hoang Kim Manh, the company’s general director, said all its products meet halal standards, from raw materials and production processes to packaging.

Alongside its flour products, CPT Corp is also introducing dried fruits such as mango and jackfruit.

“These are flavors distinctive to Vietnam. We believe that with consistent quality, Vietnamese dried fruits can win over Muslim consumers,” Manh said.

Also presenting dried fruits and vegetables at MIHAS 2025 is Thuan Huong Production Trading Company Limited, based in Dong Nai Province, southern Vietnam.

Nguyen Thi Khanh An, the firm’s representative, highlighted the advantage of offering organic products with few additives and no preservatives, which helps the company meet halal certification requirements.

She noted that maintaining the certification is not simple, as inspectors visit annually to assess production processes and ensure there is no cross-contamination with non-compliant ingredients.

“This is both a challenge and a motivation for us to uphold credibility and move toward cleaner, more sustainable production,” An said.

Ivy Nguyen, a representative of another Vietnamese agribusiness certified to meet halal requirements by a Middle Eastern organization, pointed out that the biggest challenge in obtaining halal certification—a passport for better access to strict Muslim markets—lies in factory inspections, production processes, and personnel management.

“However, with the advantage of plant-based products, the process is somewhat easier than for animal-based goods,” she added.

Beyond agricultural produce, Vietnamese enterprises are also bringing seafood, organic foods, and eco-friendly solutions to MIHAS 2025.

Thanh Nhan, head of exports at Minh Chau Import – Export Seafood Processing Company Limited in Ca Mau Province, southern Vietnam, which specializes in dried fish, said Malaysia’s strong tradition of consuming such products gives Vietnamese seafood a competitive edge.

“Muslims avoid pork and certain types of meat, but fish and seafood are common in their diet. We have studied consumer tastes to adapt our products from the outset,” she explained.

With around 2.2 billion consumers worldwide, the halal market has long been described as a golden goose of global trade, with its total value now exceeding $2 trillion.

This represents a promised land for exporting countries, including Vietnam, which has strong potential to boost exports to the halal market thanks to its advantages in farm produce, seafood, and processed foods, according to industry experts.

However, according to the Department of Vietnam Customs, trade between Vietnam and Islamic countries in the first seven months of 2025 reached only $24.7 billion, up 5.7 percent from the same period last year.

Of that total, Vietnam’s exports to Muslim nations stood at just $10.9 billion, a modest figure compared to the vast global halal market.