São Paulo – The forum that has become Brazil’s largest halal market event and space for networking will have its second edition this year, from October 23 to 24, in São Paulo. Held by the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) and certifier FAMBRAS Halal, the Global Halal Brazil Business Forum (GHB) will bring together experts, officials and businesspeople from Brazil and elsewhere. Pictured above, its 1st edition.
“We’ll show the relevance of this market to Brazilian businesspeople and officials, while presenting to Arab and Islamic attendees that Brazil is a good and reliable trade partner in halal,” said ABCC president Osmar Chohfi.
The organizers want to raise the awareness of more players in Brazil on supplying to the halal market and show to the Islamic world how great Brazil already is in the industry as a global supplier of halal meat and how capable it is to further develop, catering to new sectors and other Muslim-majority countries.
“It’s a historic moment for the industry in Brazil. We’ll bring together the key halal exports from various countries and Brazilian major figures to show the global relevance of halal, particularly for Brazil,” said Ali Zoghbi, deputy chair of FAMBRAS Halal.
Halal products are those fit for consumption of Muslims that in Islamic countries and other countries around the world. For a product to be considered halal, it has to obtain a halal certification from a certifier attesting its compliance.
“The Islamic market brings together nearly 60 countries around the world, with a population of 1.97 billion residents and an economic activity of USD 5.7 trillion a year. It’s a very significant market,” said Chohfi. According to him, Brazil exported some USD 23 billion worth of food and beverages to Islamic countries in 2022.
In addition to being the world’s biggest halal meat producer and exporter, Brazil is one of the top global suppliers of halal-certified foodstuffs, as well as a distribution hub of such products to other Mercosur states – Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay. Brazil is also home to a 1.9 million Muslims, a relevant halal consumer market.
The GHB aims to bring the latest news on halal and a major discussion on the paths of this industry through the voices of major global experts on the topic. The 2021 edition brought together over 50 speakers across ten panels and was attended by 3,000 people online and in person. Brazilian ministers and top officials of the most respected Arab Islamic entities participated.
The key topics of the second edition will be “Opportunities for Brazil in the growing global halal economy and Islamic finance,” “The added value of halal certification for the consumer,” “Digitization as a driver of global halal business,” “Halal in traceability, blockchain and certification,” “The strategic hubs for accessing the halal market,” and “Tourism and entertainment: Innovation and competitiveness.”
The event will be held in person in the WTC Events Center on the Avenida das Nações Unidas. It’ll be streamed on YouTube. Registration is open, and admission is free. Companies can associate their brand to the event as sponsors.
The plenary will take place in the morning of both days followed by the Halal Scientific Technical Congress (CTEC Halal) held by the International Academy Halal in the afternoon. “The structure of GHB has some new features: The scientific technical congress will be held, some halal-related topics like tourism and logistics will be specifically addressed, and we’ll discuss issues regarding traceability, which is a powerful tool developed in Brazil to greatly boost the already existing credibility of halal-certified services made in Brazil,” said Zoghbi.
In the days following the discussions, the Halal Brazil project will hold B2Bs and visits to companies. The initiative is carried out by the ABCC and the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil) to help manufacturers of food and beverage items with value added enter and strengthen their foothold in the global halal market.
Quick facts:
Global Halal Brazil Business Forum
October 23 and 24, 2023
WTC Events Center
Av. Nações Unidas, 12.551 – São Paulo, Brazil
Find out more and register here
Translation by Guilherme Miranda
