Date: 27 December 2012
Japanese tourism now catering to Muslims.
Seeking new opportunities in a global market said to be
worth over $600 billion, Japanese food and tourism businesses are turning their
eyes to Muslim consumers and starting to offer food and other products and
services that follow the Islamic rules of halal.
In a dimly lit Japanese restaurant near Tokyo’s Roppongi
district, seven Muslim tourists from Malaysia gathered to enjoy “yakiniku”
grilled meat that had been specially prepared and served according to Islamic
Sharia law.
For those reserving the halal fare at the restaurant in
advance, halal beef placed in a separate freezer is served with plates and
glasses that are kept in cupboards apart from other dishes to avoid direct and
indirect contact with pork and other non-halal food.
Ahmad Khuzaimi Abdul Rashid, a tourist from Malaysia who
visited the Sumiyakiya Nishiazabu eatery, said, “If it were not for these
restaurants, I would need to go for vegetarian or Malaysian food” to be certain
the food was halal, despite being keen to taste local Japanese cuisine.
Halal means permitted or lawful according to Islamic Law,
which forbids consuming flesh of swine and alcoholic drinks as well as charging
and paying interest, among other things. In terms of meat, animals need to be
properly slaughtered by following such procedures as severing veins in the neck
with a sharp knife to minimize pain and reciting the name of God, or Allah.
Sumiyakiya started offering halal yakiniku in March after
obtaining a certificate from a halal consulting firm in Japan. Since then, the
shop has been flooded with inquiries and seen the number of Muslim customers
rise by 20 percent in about nine months.
“Japanese are keeping their purse strings tight because of
economic slowdown. On the other hand, affluent Muslim customers are ready to
spend money on meals, but there aren’t places for them to eat out. I think
there are good business opportunities here,” said Roger Diaz, a 44-year-old
native of Sri Lanka who heads the restaurant.
According to the U.S. Halal Association, the total global
Muslim population is estimated at 1.6 billion, or around 25 percent of the
world’s population, with the $632 billion halal food market accounting for 16
percent of the global food industry.
The number of visitors to Japan from Indonesia, home to the
biggest Muslim population in the world, as well as from Malaysia, where about
60 percent of the population is Muslim, jumped between 2003 and 2010, according
to the Japan National Tourism Organization.
The JNTO says the number of Muslim travellers to Japan is
generally on the rise, although official data on Muslims are not available.
Seeing it as a business opportunity, some Japanese nonprofit organizations as
well as private firms have started offering services assisting Japanese
businesses to obtain halal accreditation.
Malaysia Halal Corporation Co. based in Tokyo and headed by
Akmal Abu Hassan, 42, a Malaysian Muslim, is one of them. Since its foundation
in 2010, the company has issued its own halal certificates for six hotels and
eight restaurants in Japan, including Sumiyakiya, by examining whether their
food, including seasonings and additives, is prepared in accordance with
Islamic law, including the ways in which the ingredients are stored. Hotels
certified by the firm also provide information about “qibla,” the direction of
Mecca for prayers, as well as restaurants that serve halal food.
Malaysia Halal Corporation, recognized as an internal
auditor of halal by Malaysian and Indonesian government-affiliated bodies,
conducts unannounced inspections for all the facilities it has issued
certificates to once every two or three months to maintain quality.
“People in Malaysia are aware (of the charms of) Japan,
including its world heritage sites and culture, and are eager to visit here,
but is it a place where (Muslim) foreigners can easily visit? No,” said Akmal,
pointing out complaints from Muslim travelers that they ended up eating at
Malaysian restaurants since they were unable to find halal Japanese food.
“Japan should promote itself more aggressively by making its
cuisine available for people opting for halal food,” he said, adding Japanese
businesses can find new opportunities by exporting their food and cosmetics
among other halal products to Islamic countries.
Package tours targeting Muslim travellers have also proved
popular. Osaka-based travel agency Miyako International Tourist Co. provides
tours with Japanese Muslim tour conductors that include daily prayers and halal
restaurants. Hideshi Matsui, a Japanese Muslim and president of the travel
company, said single-use cups and plates are used at restaurants during the
tours to avoid possible discomfort.
Destinations are also carefully chosen as some tourists
expressed disgust after visiting cherry blossom viewing sites where many local
people were drinking alcohol, he said. “Without understanding Muslim people’s
way of life and their beliefs, we cannot gain understanding from them and it
could even be dangerous,” said Matsui, adding such tours have received a number
of reservations, even though their prices are set higher than average.
By MEGUMI IIZUKA www.japantimes.co.jp
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