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"Islamic finance and capital are ready to pull Europe out of crisis" and "Italy in particular" as long as the countries follow Halal food standards ("conformance" in Arabic) in "production, logistics and commercialization" consistent with the precepts of Sharia, the laws that establish what is licit or prohibited for a Muslim. This is the message of the World Halal Food Council (WHFC), which was held in Rome March 26-30.
The event organized by the Italian section of the Halal International Authority (HIA), the only organism recognized for the quality certification for products according to Islamic standards, gathered together representatives of the 57 Islamic states of the Organization for Islamic Cooperation (OIC) for the first time in Italy. "We are willing to invest in Italy, which we want to see become the hub of the Halal market in the Mediterranean," explained the Saudi sheik Fahah Alared, a member of the Committee for Islamization of Banks.
Halal products are a global market worth "13 trillion per year, growing 15% every year, reaching two billion Muslims," he added.