Egypt and South Korea on Sunday held a joint video-conference to organize the Korean Halal Food Festival, dedicated to sharing Korean foods with Egyptians that satisfy Islamic “halal” food laws.
Since the popularization of Korean drama and music, Egyptians have taken an interest in Korean food as well, said South Korean ambassador to Egypt Hong Jin-Wook.
However, those Egyptians interesting in Korean cooking have found it difficult to find halal Korean ingredients or specific ingredients, he added.
By sharing halal Korean products, Jin-wook explained that Egyptian families will be encouraged to try out more Korean food – and in turn, Korean families will be eager to taste Egyptian dishes.
The President of the Egyptian General Authority for Standardization and Quality Ashraf Afifi said that 173 Egyptian companies provide 5,000 halal products to countries including the United States, Turkey, Singapore, France, England and Italy.
The trade volume of halal products is expected to reach US$200 trillion in both the food and cosmetics fields, he added, as several countries refuse to receive any products not labeled halal.
Edited translation from Al-Masry Al-Youm
