The facility, along with other plans to introduce a fish hatchery and nursery, cold storage room and blast freezers, requires the joint-venture to inject a further $6 million to its initial investment of $1.45 million into the "fish cage culture project" located near the Pelong Rocks offshore from Muara Town, reports The Brunei Times.
"Once the JV company has fully established its deep-sea aquaculture venture, a halal fish-processing plant will be established to process fish that are available in Brunei and surrounding regions for export to the Middle East and other Muslim countries," a statement from BioMarine issued earlier this week said. The Chinese company that partly owns BioMarine is Raoping Jin Hang Deep Sea Cage Development Co Ltd.
A coordinator for BioMarine, who asked not to be named, said that among the reasons the Chinese company chose to invest in Brunei was the Sultanate's reputation and recognition as a halal hub.
"Brunei is one of the most trusted halal (producing countries) in the region. This is one of the main reasons why the Chinese investors came here," he said.
He said it was difficult for Chinese halal products to penetrate the Middle East market, and thus the Chinese investors hoped to capitalise on Brunei's strict halal control procedures and guidelines.
China to Invest in Halal Fish Processing in Brunei
BRUNEI - A joint venture (JV) between Bruneian and Chinese companies, will establish a halal fish-processing facility in the Sultanate once the newly-formed company has settled in and operations are running smoothly.
