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| Ting speaks at a media preview for FHA. |
Food&HotelAsia (FHA), Asia’s largest and most comprehensive food and hospitality trade exhibition and conference event, will host its first Halal Supermarket as part of FoodAsia.
Ting Siew Mui, Project Director, Lifestyle Events, Singapore Exhibition Services, said that the Supermarket is jointly organised with DagangHalal, a Malaysian marketplace featuring halal products and services. Delegates will be able to source for halal-certified ingredients and supplies at the Halal Supermarket as well as learn more about halal certification.
Ting noted that the term 'supermarket' should not be taken literally. "It's to give a taste what it can be if we were to use that area to help buyers to identify halal products in the show," she said. "The focus is really on highlighting the exhibitors from different countries who are selling halal products. It is basically a showcase of some of the exhibitors, not all of them; we hope to have people go to the exhibitors' booths as we will be producing the trail."
Self-guided trails, to be introduced for the first time on various themes of interest, will include one for halal food & beverages to include exhibitors whose products are halal certified but which not be in the Halal Supermarket.
Ting also shared that the Halal Supermarket is not focused on the Middle East market, but on the high demand in Southeast Asia. "We are surrounding by countries who are consuming a lot of halal food... that's the reason our manufacturers are doing (halal certification)," she said. "It's a trend that we have to move towards. (With) the affluence of the countries around us, they will be buying more and consuming more."
"There is a definite increase in the demand for halal products," Lee Yee Fung, Group Director for Lifestyle Business at International Enterprise (IE) Singapore, agreed. "(Singapore companies) are already halal certified and looking to see where the other markets are. Hopefully it will generate even more traction for our companies."
Sunny Koh, Singapore Manufacturing Federation (SMF) Deputy President and Chairman of the SMF Food & Beverages Industry Group, added that 70 to 80% of Singapore food exhibitors are halal certified. "The Singapore market is by nature very small. You must be halal certified to be a supplier for a lot of food services," he said.
Certified courses to be conducted at the event include those from the Speciality Coffee Association of Europe (SCAE). In addition to barista skills and brewing courses, a Sensory Judge Course, Sensory Skills (Foundation Level) and Roasting Skills (Foundation Level) certifications are offered at FHA. New tea certifications available include Global Tea Menu and Hands-on Basic Tea Blending.
Today, FHA encompasses FoodAsia, Bakery&Pastry, HotelAsia, HospitalityTechnology, HospitalityStyleAsia and SpecialityCoffee&Tea, occupying all 10 halls at Singapore Expo. Country pavilions include those from Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, and Turkey. About 3,300 exhibitors from 70 countries and regions will be housed in 103,000 sq m of exhibition space.
Ting Siew Mui, Project Director, Lifestyle Events, Singapore Exhibition Services, said that the Supermarket is jointly organised with DagangHalal, a Malaysian marketplace featuring halal products and services. Delegates will be able to source for halal-certified ingredients and supplies at the Halal Supermarket as well as learn more about halal certification.
Ting noted that the term 'supermarket' should not be taken literally. "It's to give a taste what it can be if we were to use that area to help buyers to identify halal products in the show," she said. "The focus is really on highlighting the exhibitors from different countries who are selling halal products. It is basically a showcase of some of the exhibitors, not all of them; we hope to have people go to the exhibitors' booths as we will be producing the trail."
Self-guided trails, to be introduced for the first time on various themes of interest, will include one for halal food & beverages to include exhibitors whose products are halal certified but which not be in the Halal Supermarket.
"There is a definite increase in the demand for halal products," Lee Yee Fung, Group Director for Lifestyle Business at International Enterprise (IE) Singapore, agreed. "(Singapore companies) are already halal certified and looking to see where the other markets are. Hopefully it will generate even more traction for our companies."
Sunny Koh, Singapore Manufacturing Federation (SMF) Deputy President and Chairman of the SMF Food & Beverages Industry Group, added that 70 to 80% of Singapore food exhibitors are halal certified. "The Singapore market is by nature very small. You must be halal certified to be a supplier for a lot of food services," he said.
Certified courses to be conducted at the event include those from the Speciality Coffee Association of Europe (SCAE). In addition to barista skills and brewing courses, a Sensory Judge Course, Sensory Skills (Foundation Level) and Roasting Skills (Foundation Level) certifications are offered at FHA. New tea certifications available include Global Tea Menu and Hands-on Basic Tea Blending.
Today, FHA encompasses FoodAsia, Bakery&Pastry, HotelAsia, HospitalityTechnology, HospitalityStyleAsia and SpecialityCoffee&Tea, occupying all 10 halls at Singapore Expo. Country pavilions include those from Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, and Turkey. About 3,300 exhibitors from 70 countries and regions will be housed in 103,000 sq m of exhibition space.
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| Prima Taste is introducing wholegrain LaMian (noodles) in laksa and curry flavours. The steamed noodles are made with 51% Superfine Wholegrain flour, and come with Prima Taste paste. The halal-certified packs do not contain added MSG or preservatives, and have no artificial colouring or flavouring. Typical instant noodle packs offer fried noodles and powder-based seasoning. |
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| Masarang Forest Sugar from Straits Wholefoods is a low-glycemic, organic sugar from Sulawesi rainforests. The sugar is derived from the sap of male flowers from the wild Arenga Pinnata tree, which has deep roots and prevents soil erosion. The sugar is dehydrated with geothermal heat, making it particularly eco-friendly, and comes from the Masarang Foundation, which aims to save rainforests and wildlide in Asia. The sugar is said to have a creamy caramel taste that enhances foods and beverages (Editor's note: The sugar has a subtle fragrance that will definitely add a hint of depth to coffees and teas). |
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| Source: Tan Seng Kee Foods (TSK). TSK is known for its KangKang (康康) fresh, preservative-free shelf-stable noodle range. These all-natural and preservative-free pasteurised fresh noodles have a shelf life of three to four weeks without refrigeration, six months in chilled conditions and 12 months if frozen. The company is launching Express Meal Kits, which incorporate its noodles together with sauces for laksa, curry mee and the non-spicy prawn mee. TSK has established itself as a trusted halal whole plant and noodle manufacturer and distributor. Its rice-based noodles are also certified gluten-free. The company has launched and exported products to the US, Europe, Hong Kong and Middle East markets. |
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| Fischeon is a halal, fish-based take on what is popularly known as luncheon meat in Singapore, and spam in the west. The newest Fischeon member is otah flavoured. Traditional otah is fish meat mixed with spices and tapioca flour, wrapped in banana leaves and and grilled over a charcoal fire. The canned version can be eaten straight out of the can or fried, just like normal otah (Editor's note: both fried and ready-to-eat versions have the otah texture, but the ready-to-eat version retains the lemongrass fragrance much better). The plate of nasi lemak to the bottom left features two slices of fried Fischeon otah and a slice of ready-to-eat Fischeon otah in between them. Fischeon comes from Thong Siek Food Industries, which also manufactures the DoDo brand of prepared foods. |
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| The DoDo brand recently launched bamboo charcoal and matcha fishcake angles, which are bouncy triangular chunks of pre-cooked fishcake. |
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| Bakery products specialist BHF's Simon Tay says that rather than vie for attention in the Halal Supermarket, the company will showcase products at their own FoodAsia booth. This allows the full range of products to be seen at their best against the full complement of advanced equipment that will be installed at the booth. BHF is halal, ISO 2200 and HACCP-certified, and more than doubled its volume of production in 2014 after automating processes. |
Interested?
FHA2016 will run from 12 to 15 April 2016 at Singapore Expo (Halls 1 to 9 Annex) from
10am – 6pm (12 – 14 April 2016) and 10am – 4pm (15 April 2016)
The event is open to business and trade professionals only
Read the WorkSmart Asia blog post on what's new at FHA
Read the Suroor Asia blog post about Neo Group's investment in Thong Siek.