As outlined in the Third National Agricultural Policy (NAP3), 1998-2010, there is a need to enhance the competitiveness and to increase value-added to the whole supply chain as well as to position Malaysia as an International Halal Food Hub. Its effectiveness as the Halal Food Hub is based on the expectation and beliefs that:

(i)Malaysia is recognized as a truly Islamic country;

(ii)Malaysia has the raw materials and supporting infrastructure as well as the processing technologies to produce and market the Halal food products;

(iii)Halal certification issued by the Department of Islamic Development Malaysia (JAKIM) is recognized world-wide due to its stringent criteria employed and also much sought after by other countries; and

(iv)There is a strong commitment from the Government. This seems to be a noble idea but its implementation as a national policy, however, has to be critically assessed and evaluated as it has far-reaching implications for the economy. A study was conducted to assess the market potentials for Malaysian differentiated meat and meat-based products in several markets, viz., Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Europe.