Thais eye Bahrain as halal hub

       Thailand is eyeing Bahrain as a gateway for exporting halal food and southern products to Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) states using the good relationship between the two countries.
       Thailand has to shift its export focus from the US and Europe to other markets such as the GCC states because of the severe impact of the global financial crisis, said Assoc Prof Dr Winai Dahlan,the director of the Halal Science Centre of Chulalongkorn University. Thailand could gain significant market share from Brazil, Europe, the US, Canada, France and the Netherlands, he added.
       "Our obstacle is we have constraints in expanding our markets and often trade with familiar markets like the US. We always thought the US and European markets would not be hit hard by financial problems but we were wrong," he said.
       "The discord between the Muslim and Western countries since 9/11 has become good for the Muslim countries because they have experienced fewer effects from this crisis - except for the United Arab Emirates, which has many business interest with the US."
       Thailand has neglected Muslim countries and invested too much in Western countries, despite Muslim markets being stronger, he said.
       In his view, Bahrain has high potential for importing halal food and would make a good hub for Thai halal food because it is visited by Muslims from nations like Saudi Arabia and Qatar. As well as being a gateway for the GCC, Bahrain could become the gateway for exports to North Africa and Central Asia.
       The GCC - which consists of the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia,Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman has a population of 38.5 million.
       Thailand is ranked the fifth-largest halal food exporter but the world's seventh largest food exporter.
       In the GCC, Thailand will compete on quality rather than price, said Dr
       Winai.
       "We certainly cannot compete with China, India and Brazil on price and we cannot compete with the US, New Zealand and Australia solely on the matter of quality. But we Winai: Muslim have chosen to markets neglected.stay balanced between price and quality. Our products might not be the high-end but the prices are lower. I believe we can sell our goods here," he said.
       Dr Winai will introduce halal science to open the market and plans to show his achievements in Germany this October, he said.
       "Science can give advantages in production while it does not increase the cost of production," he said.
       Halal food is produced in Bangkok,Samut Prakan, Samut Sakhon, Ratchaburi and Nakhon Pathom provinces.
       "We have at least 8,000 factories to produce the food but have only 200 exporters. If we want to expand the halal food market, we have to roll out another 7,800 factories," he said.
       Meanwhile, the Southern Border Provinces Administrative Center (SBPAC) is seeking overseas markets for local producers.
       Sommitre Silprasert, director of SBPAC's policy co-ordinating centre on economic and social development, said the organisation is seeking new markets for local products from Thailand's five southernmost provinces.
       "The GCC markets have more opportunities to expand because they are higher-income markets, and Thailand and Thai foods are favourable to Bahraini leaders," he said.
       The centre has already exported canned tuna to Lebanon and Syria; Batik clothes from Narathiwat to Europe; and artificial flowers made of rubber from Pattani to Japan and China.
       Potential exports include home decoration items, basketry from Narathiwat,Muslim-style dresses and accessories,pearls from Satun, as well as fruits such as longan and durian from Yala, he said.
       Due to unrest, few tourists visit the south of Thailand so overseas markets could help raise the area's incomes, he said.
       Mr Sommitre said he also planned to export rambutan and mangosteen to GCC markets. Similar products are on sale in the region's markets for 600 baht per kilogramme, considerably more than their prices in Thailand.