Luxon at East Asia Summit. Photo: Supplied / PMO
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has talked up a project to boost halal meat exports on his second day at the East Asia Summit.
The government first announced its commitment to boost halal meat trade with Malaysia in July.
Speaking in Kuala Lumpur on the second day of the ASEAN East Asia Summit, Luxon said the halal deal was "really important".
"If you just take Malaysia alone, they have about a US$1.4 billion market for meat alone, all types of meat.
"New Zealand sells currently about $60 million into Malaysia alone ... and they import, you know, anywhere from 75 percent to 95 percent of their meat products into Malaysia, so that's just a huge upside potential.
"When I first came here, sat down with Prime Minister Anwar, this was our number one thing to focus on, because it can unlock a lot of growth."
He said an agreement had been reached, but it now needed ratification and in turn would require audits of meat processing facilities and improvements to halal certification in New Zealand which Luxon said was "too inconsistent".
"The standards have been applied a little inconsistently ... and we've got businesses here like Silver Fern Farms who are selling already into Malaysia but there's many other businesses ... they don't want to get in a situation where they're selling product to Malaysia and somewhere it gets stopped on the border because it hasn't been a certain standard which someone's interpreted differently."
The certification revamp would also help with the Muslim community in New Zealand, he said.
He also hailed the upcoming upgrade to the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with the ASEAN Southeast Asian grouping, which would build on the current $30b trading relationship.
"All of that's designed to lift incomes and wages for our people back at home," he said.
New Zealand is this year marking a 50th anniversary of trading relations with ASEAN, and Luxon said he wanted the country to be "more invested and more embedded" into the region.
"These are middle economies or developing economies that are moving lots of people into the middle classes, they obviously want to buy New Zealand products and services, but also our own security in this region really matters.
"We're very invested into Southeast Asia, there's huge opportunity, that's why I've had I think 42 Prime Ministerial visits into this region, and that's been very deliberate because we want to anchor New Zealand's future into this part of the world."
He said APEC was a very economically focused forum, and the next step on the trip - to South Korea, New Zealand's fifth-biggest trading partner - would also see an upgrade to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
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