A seminar to boost trade in Halal products, which are manufactured underIslamic law, opened in the Malaysian capital city Kuala Lumpur on Sept.27.

As part of activities under the 2011 nationaltrade promotion programme of the Vietnamese Ministry of Industry andTrade, the event was jointly organised by the Vietnamese Embassy inMalaysia, and the Chinese Chambers of Industry and Commerce of KualaLumpur and Selangor.

Addressing the openingceremony, the Vietnamese Ambassador to Malaysia, Nguyen Hong Thao, saidthat the event is a positive signal for Vietnam to cooperate withMalaysian businesses in manufacturing and exporting Halal products.

Thao said that the cooperation would not only help Vietnam exploit theMalaysian market but also the global Halal market, which is expected tobe worth 2.3 trillion USD annually, thanks to the rising demand forHalal products from Islamic countries.

The eventoffered a chance for Vietnamese businesses to get an insight intoregulations and criteria for the certification of Halal products issuedby Malaysia.

In the first six months of this year,Vietnam’s total Halal food value reached 1 billion USD and this figureis expected to increase by 2015.

Currently, nearly50 Vietnamese companies receive Halal certificates every year forseafood, which accounts for 60 percent of Halal products, beverages,canned food, confectionery, vegetarian food and medicine./.