Moscow Halal Expo 'helping express Islam'

Moscow’s International Halal Expo is showing the way to express Islam and Islamic principles, fashion designer Dilara Sadrieva said.

"We want to change the common idea that Islamic dressing style is boring and dull," Sadrieva said. "Muslim women have brought beauty and prestige to the world."

Yusup Magomaev, deputy chairman of the Chechen government’s tourism committee, said the expo was an opportunity to find business partners.

The fair, for which Anadolu Agency is the global communications partner, is packed with displays from companies involved in Islamic finance, clothing, fashion, culture, pharmacy and tourism, as well as halal food products and services.

More than 200 firms are taking part in the three-day exhibition, some from as far afield as Turkey, Iran, Britain, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and Malaysia.

Russia's halal sector 'unaffected by economic crisis'

 The halal food industry in Russia is unaffected by the economic crisis that has hit the country in the wake of sanctions, an industry figure said on Friday.

“Despite the economic crisis, not even a single firm which sells halal products has closed,” Madina Kalimullina, director of the sixth Moscow International Halal Expo, said.

Kalimullina claimed that interest in halal food had increased recently as people become more aware of it.

Kalimullina welcomed Anadolu Agency’s involvement. “For the first time we are working with an international news agency,” she said. “This is a new level for us.”

The program includes a day of Islamic culture, giving visitors the chance to see new trends in Muslim fashion and cuisine, as well as examine Islamic art and listen to traditional music.

Yekaterina Preina, who represents a firm producing halal food for children, said that until recently the sector was absent in Russia.

“We started our work firstly in the Muslim regions,” she said, adding that “now there are demands coming from other regions too.”