视频播放位置 下载安装Flash播放器

The pristine natural environment and the smooth flowing Yellow River both contribute to the fertile plains in Ningxia, an autonomous province located in the northwest of China, and the land of the Hui ethnic people.

Ningxia is the home of 6.13 million people, 2.3 million of them Muslims.

The Muslims co-exist in harmony with the rest of the population and have successfully established a huge halal market and complementing industries.

Realising the opportunities there, a Malaysian company, Fahim International Halal Industries, has spread its wings to Ningxia through a collaboration with its Chinese counterpart, Ningxia Agricultural Comprehensive Investment Company.

The collaboration allows Fahim, with a 49 per cent equity holding in the venture, to tap the available resources to produce halal items and utilize Ningxia as a stepping stone to penetrate the greater Chinese market.

This writer had the opportunity to meet with Ningxia Fahim's managing Director, Dr Lim Yor Hana, during the Muslim Tour programme in China recently.

During the meeting Dr Lim elaborated on how the subsidiary of Dewina Food Industries Sdn Bhd, which markets its products under the Brahim brand name, is making inroads in China.

SHEEP FARM

Today, the halal industry, especially in the food segment, is valued at 190 billion yuan (US$30 billion) per annum and caters to two billion Muslims worldwide.

Through the collaboration Fahim has embarked on supplying halal mutton for a start, Dr Lim said.

Fahim has established a sheep farm on 323.75 hectares of land in the Yanchi district, located a two-hour drive from Yinchuan.

Based on the feedlot concept, the farm incorporates breeding, marketing and slaughtering of the animals in the halal way.

"The collaborative effort took off in April 2011 with 15,000 sheep and is set to emerge as an exemplary undertaking by the Chinese Government," he said.

The project is a comprehensive halal undertaking - from sourcing the animal feed to maintaining the farm environment.

"We make sure that the sheep are fed with hygienic food and properly cared for until they are slaughtered," said Dr Lim, who hails from Terengganu.

To ensure the animals are halal, the company has even gone so far as planting maize and alfalfa on 324 hectares of land to feed the sheep.

Additionally, to ensure the animals are slaughtered as stipulated in Islam and according to international standards, Fahim has embarked on setting up an abattoir.

"With the abattoir, we hope to slaughter up to one million sheep per year, sourced not only from our farm but also from outside," he said.