Over the past two years, plant-based food consumption has grown by 49% across the EU, reaching a total sales volume of €3.6 billion.
25% of Italian buffalo mozzarella is sold to the halal market
2025-05-15
Dairy-flavored buffalo mozzarella has become a popular food among Muslim consumers in the Gulf region and Europe.
Producers of Italy's prized buffalo mozzarella, a cornerstone of the Mediterranean diet, are increasingly turning their attention to the Muslim market as sales of their halal cheese boom.
exist2011Sales of halal cheese, launched by Naples mozzarella makers in 2016, have increased to more than 10 million tons last year, meaning that a quarter of buffalo mozzarella sold now goes to the halal market.
Mozzarella is made from cow's milk, while the creamier and more expensive buffalo mozzarella is made from the milk of buffaloes, which typically graze in the aquatic pastures of Naples.
Italy is seeing a surge in demand from Muslim consumers in the Gulf and Europe, the head of an association of Italian producers said.20%of manufacturers are now producing halal products.A spokesman said cheese demand in the UAE has risen 50 percent in the past two years.
RaimondoMr. said the halal recipe is the same as regular mozzarella, but the products used to clean machinery do not contain alcohol, and the animal curds used to make the cheese come from halal-certified animals.
The imam of the Naples mosque sent commissioners to producers to certify that halal regulations were followed before the cheese left the factory.Consumers in the Gulf region queue up to buy halal cheese, even though it costs a fortune per kilogram once it is exported.80US dollars, while in Naples it is about per kilo12EUR.
Germany and France together account for half of buffalo mozzarella exports, while the UK accounts for13%。
The requirement that cheese be refrigerated overseas has been challenged by Italian purists, who claim cheese is best eaten quickly, without refrigeration."We are now developing a cheese specifically for export that you can refrigerate without spoiling it," the spokesman said.
Buffalo mozzarella rings targeting Muslim consumers, some say, are1000It was first introduced to Italy many years ago by the Arab rulers of Sicily.
The demands of Muslims will only increase;RaimondoMr. said. “There are about20100 million halal consumers,2030By 2020, they will constitute the world's approximately26%consumption."