Agriculture show to unite ASEAN, China

Agriculture show to unite ASEAN, China

Novan Iman Santosa
The Jakarta Post/Bangkok

The ASEAN-China free trade arrangement (FTA) and its potential
for the region's agricultural industry has inspired a Malaysian
company to organize an integrated agriculture show featuring
representatives from all 11 signatories.

The company, Ten Plus One Ltd Co, will organize the ASEAN
China Agriculture Show from Nov. 25 to Nov. 28 at Kuala Lumpur's
Malaysia International Exhibition and Convention Centre. The
event is believed to be the first-ever ASEAN-China expo
specializing in agriculture.

"We are only picking up the Malaysian government's emphasis on
the agriculture sector as part of (Malaysia's) third engine of
growth," Kerk Loong Sing said on Tuesday.

"Malaysia has seen a declining role in agriculture. After
independence, agriculture contributed some 85 percent to the
state revenue but now the figure has dropped drastically to only
8.5 percent," he said.

Kerk said Malaysia spent some US$15 billion a year on food and
food products imported from countries like Indonesia and
Thailand.

"We can learn from each other and Thailand is the best example
for agriculture success stories in our region about how to
penetrate the global market.

"Meanwhile, China is now improving the quality of its
agricultural products as they now can penetrate the markets of
South Korea and even protective Japan.

"The exhibition will become a good venue to exchange
experiences and ideas," he said.

Kerk said China could no longer rely on its cheap labor and
had intensified research and development activities expecting
that in the next four to five years the Chinese products would
multiply in numbers and improve in quality.

ASEAN and China have a total combined market of 1.8 billion
people.

The agriculture expo will also feature a special section on
halal food.

"Halal food is not only a huge market but also a specific one
because food has to be processed according to Islamic law; hence
the importance of a certification process," he said.

A half-day seminar would also be held in conjunction with the
exhibition, Kerk said.

"The Malaysian deputy minister of agriculture and agro-based
industries (PUT NAME HERE) will be the keynote speaker," he said.

"Another Malaysian speaker will speak on halal food
certification, meanwhile Thailand will talk about its success
story in agriculture and China will deliver its plan for Chinese
agriculture development."

The exhibition would not only benefit ASEAN and China but also
those in the Middle East and Africa, he said.

"People from the Middle East are now turning to our region
because they feeling unwelcome in the United States and Europe,
especially because of what is going on in their area.

"The exhibition will become a good opportunity for us to offer
our products, especially regarding halal food," he said.