KUALA LUMPUR, 21 January 2020: EYOUTH together with the Ministry of Youth and Sports
has launched the “MyKampung Japan” campaign as part of its efforts to showcase and
promote Malaysian products, especially halal food and agriculture products by young local
entrepreneurs, in conjunction with the upcoming 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
“There are many opportunities for young entrepreneurs to penetrate into the Japanese market, especially as the nation gears up towards the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. In fact, it is expected that more than 40 million tourists including 8 million Muslim visitors will be arriving during the prestigious sporting event, increasing demand for quality halal products. With technology, young entrepreneurs are becoming increasingly innovative in marketing their products through digital platforms – and we hope to encourage and inspire more through this youth campaign,” said YB Syed Saddiq, Minister of Youth and Sports, who is also the Youth Patron of EYOUTH.
“MyKampung Japan” is initiated through the parties’ collaboration with the Japan Graduates
Association of Malaysia (JAGAM) and Malaysian Students’ Association in Japan (MSAJ). One of the key initiatives includes the mobilisation of Malaysian university students in Japan to actively promote the local Malaysian Halal products and cultural heritage on digital
platforms.
This youth initiative is a part of the preparation for the Olympics which aims to be the first
Halal-friendly Olympic Games for Muslim tourists. This youth-led campaign also is in line
with the “Digital Trade Halal Value Chain for Tokyo Olympics 2020” initiative which was
launched by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry and MATRADE in collaboration
with the relevant agencies on 15 August 2019. Also, MyKampung is collaborating with Keith
Wong, Chief Executive Officer from Acrosx Japan Inc., who is one of the key partners for the “Digital Trade Halal Value Chain for Tokyo Olympics 2020”.
The main highlight of this initiative is the Halal culinary exchange training programme between Acrosx Japan Inc. and Majlis Sukan Negara whereby top Japanese chefs will be brought into Malaysia to be trained on halal food preparation. Keith, who is a Malaysian, appointed as a committee member in the Halal Training Expert Committee under Japan’s Ministry of Health said, “There is a huge market for halal products in Japan as the country is preparing to cater to the expected influx of Muslim visitors and athletes during the Olympics. The culinary exchange programme is a good step in enabling Japanese chefs and restaurant operators to better understand halal cuisines while getting acquainted with Malaysian agriculture ingredients and Halal resources from Malaysia. We also plan to empower the Halal ecosystem of both Malaysia and Japan, with Halal Development Corporation Bhd (HDC) as a strategic partner for Halal talent development, trade facilitation and investments”.
Bryan Loo, CEO of Loob Holding, will be appointed as the National F&B Culinary Advisor for MyKampung’s Malaysia-Japan culinary chef exchange programme to curate a MyKampung Menu using local Malaysian agriculture ingredients for top Japanese chefs to adopt in their restaurants across Japan leading up to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. This menu, together with a listing of local halal food entrepreneurs and agriculture product suppliers, will be distributed to the Japan Chef Association as reference.
Designed as an international lifestyle destination that embodies the three guiding principles of “Smart, Livable, Sustainable”, Bell Avenue in Sunsuria City, Sepang will play host to
Malaysia’s first-ever MyKampung Japan festival on 18 & 19 April 2020. The festival will target
young halal food entrepreneurs and agriculture suppliers as part of the culinary exchange
programmes’ effort to increase Malaysian kampung brands’ exposure to international buyers.
“Companies must adapt their work practices and business models in order to engage the youth and become more relevant to the changing consumer behaviour as the youth are more prepared to speak up, take charge and experiment with unconventional solutions and that in turn fits well with one of Sunsuria’s vision of encouraging openness to ideas, innovations and inventions”, said Tan Sri Datuk Ter Leong Yap, Executive Chairman of Sunsuria Berhad.
“It is an honour for us to anchor on our F&B expertise and serve as a national culinary advisor for this programme. With TeaLive’s commitment to halal compliance combined with the innovative credentials of our executive chef, Malcolm Goh, we genuinely hope that our representation will help demonstrate the thriving potential of Malaysia’s F&B scene to our international peers,” said Bryan.
During the soft launch of MyKampung Japan, Tun Dr Daim Zainuddin, Former Finance
Minister of Malaysia, was also present to highlight the importance of empowering youth to be interested in agropreneurship and for big businesses to support and promote local Kampung agriculture products to a global audience.
