{"id":397817,"date":"2025-10-27T15:43:33","date_gmt":"2025-10-27T18:43:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/?p=397817"},"modified":"2025-10-27T15:45:09","modified_gmt":"2025-10-27T18:45:09","slug":"halal-forum-opens-with-focus-on-esg-trade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/halal-forum-opens-with-focus-on-esg-trade\/","title":{"rendered":"Halal forum opens with focus on ESG, trade"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

S\u00e3o Paulo \u2013 The Global Halal Brazil Business Forum (GHB) kicked off Monday (27) in S\u00e3o Paulo, focusing on expanding Brazil\u2019s trade with Islamic countries and aligning environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles with halal concepts, which define what is permissible for Muslim consumption. Now in its third edition, the biennial event is organized in partnership by the Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce <\/strong>(ABCC<\/a>) and FAMBRAS Halal Certifier. This year, the forum runs Monday and Tuesday (28) at the WTC Events Center.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"The
The forum\u2019s opening featured leaders from organizations involved in halal certification and product promotion<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The ABCC\u2019s VP for International Relations & Secretary-General, Mohamad Orra Mourad, highlighted at the forum opening that Brazil is the world\u2019s largest halal protein supplier, exporting USD 6\u202fbillion of such products to the 57 countries of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in 2024. Total food and beverage exports to these countries reached USD 28\u202fbillion in the same period.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite this trade volume, Mourad noted there is room for growth. \u201cWe must work to diversify the export portfolio, which, although robust, still largely focuses on basic products like meat and agricultural commodities,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Zoghbi:
Zoghbi: society demands ethics and purpose when choosing the products it consumes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Mourad noted that the Muslim population is mostly young and growing faster than the global population, offering business opportunities with the 57 OIC countries. He also stressed the need to strengthen institutional efforts so Brazilian and OIC entrepreneurs have a favorable business environment for trade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The President of FAMBRAS Halal, Mohamed Hussein El Zoghbi, highlighted that this year\u2019s forum theme is \u201chalal green,\u201d emphasizing the link between sustainability and shared values in ESG and halal. ESG principles reflect a company\u2019s commitment to environmental sustainability, employees, society, and corporate governance. Halal, in turn, exemplifies purity and hygiene for Muslims, as well as respect for animal welfare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Halal products cannot contain pork or alcohol, both forbidden for Muslims. \u201cQuality and price are no longer enough\u2014the world demands ethics and purpose toward people and the Planet,\u201d said Zoghbi.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Alzeben:
Alzeben: Brazil is globally recognized for the quality of its halal products<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Alisson Navarro, Vice President of Beef at MBRF, a Brazilian company and one of the world\u2019s largest meat processors, highlighted the company\u2019s long-standing presence in Arab countries, with brands like Sadia being market leaders in the Gulf for over 50 years in a partnership \u201cbuilt over decades,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a relationship that values not only the products but also the principles,\u201d the executive added. The company is the result of the recent merger between Marfrig, a major beef producer, and BRF, one of the world\u2019s largest chicken processors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Palestine\u2019s Ambassador and Dean of the Arab Ambassadors Council in Bras\u00edlia, Ibrahim Alzeben, said the presence of council diplomats at the forum exemplifies Arab countries\u2019 trust in Brazil as a halal products partner but emphasized that ties between these nations run deeper.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Alzeben noted that there is room to strengthen the commercial relationship between Brazil and Islamic countries. \u201cBrazil is globally recognized for the excellence of its halal products, which reinforces its image as a reliable and competitive partner. But there\u2019s still much room to expand this cooperation\u2014by integrating more sectors, promoting investments, and strengthening the cultural and human ties that unite our peoples,\u201d the diplomat said.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"Navarro,
Navarro, from MBRF, highlighted that the company has been present in the Arab world for more than 50 years<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

for more than 50 years<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GHB sponsors include MBRF (Marfrig \u2013 BRF), MODON (Saudi Authority for Industrial Cities and Technology Zones), Seara, CaraPreta Carnes Nobres, EcoHalal, Emirates, Grupo MHE9, Laila Travel, Prime Company, and SGS, with catering by \u00c1gua Mineral Frescca and P\u00e3o & Arte Frozen Bread.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Strategic partners include the Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Development (ICCD) and Islamic Chamber Halal Services (ICHS). There is also institutional support from Brazilian beef industry group ABIEC, Brazilian Beef, Brazil\u2019s chicken and pork lobby ABPA, Brazilian Chicken, International Halal Academy, and the Union of Arab Chambers (UAC).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read more<\/em>:
\u201cHere we respect all cultures,\u201d says Brazil VP<\/a>
Mauro Vieira sees strong Brazil\u2013Islamic trust<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Translated by Guilherme Miranda<\/strong><\/p>\n

Marcelo Brammer\/Arab-Brazilian Chamber<\/div>
Marcelo Brammer\/Arab-Brazilian Chamber<\/div>
Marcelo Brammer\/Arab-Brazilian Chamber<\/div>
Marcelo Brammer\/Arab-Brazilian Chamber<\/div>
Marcelo Brammer\/Arab-Brazilian Chamber<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The largest event on halal opportunities in the Americas, the Global Halal Brazil Business Forum highlights the challenge of diversifying Brazil\u2019s export basket to buyers.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2317,"featured_media":397777,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[46537],"tags":[48478,9534,17689,9561,15785,54795,25568,15786,9550,1818,9897,2299,27364],"class_list":{"0":"post-397817","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arab-brazilian-chamber","8":"tag-arab-brazilian-chamber-of-commerce-2","9":"tag-brazil-en","10":"tag-esg","11":"tag-exports-en","12":"tag-fambras-halal-en-2","13":"tag-ghb-en-2-en","14":"tag-ghb-en","15":"tag-halal-en-2","16":"tag-halal-en","17":"tag-islamic","18":"tag-palestine-en","19":"tag-sustainability","20":"tag-sustentabilidade-en-2"},"wps_subtitle":"The largest event on halal opportunities in the Americas, the Global Halal Brazil Business Forum highlights the challenge of diversifying Brazil\u2019s export basket to buyers.","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/397817","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2317"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=397817"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/397817\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/397777"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=397817"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=397817"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anba.com.br\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=397817"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}