PENANG's world renowned hawkers need to venture out of their comfort zone and not rely solely on cooking, serving and ensuring quality tastes.
They need to turn into "foodpreneurs" to produce new forms of food from processed to packaging and investing in nutritional - based dishes.
The glowing tale of Penang as the street food capital of Malaysia should no longer be confined to taste or traditional dishes but evolve into one which is globally competitive, said Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow.
The Batu Kawan MP said this after launching the FoodPreneur Expo 2025 at the Setia SPICE Convention Centre.
Chow paid tribute to the event organiser - Foodicious Sdn Bhd for organising the inaugural event, describing it as a timely platform that exposes both existing and aspiring entrepreneurs to the opportunities and challenges within the food and beverage (F&B) eco-system.
“The F&B sector is attractive to startups and even homemakers because entry barriers are relatively lower, and Penang already has a strong eco-system. But for startups especially, it is important to understand the challenges, business models and scalability of products, and platforms like this help to provide that exposure,” he said.
Chow said Penang’s food culture has long enjoyed international recognition, recalling his recent visit to Japan, where he witnessed people using chopsticks to eat roti canai.
“When I was in Japan for the World Expo, I saw people eating roti canai with chopsticks. They were curious, asking where the food came from and how it was made. That reminded me that Penang food has a strong global appeal,” he said.
He added that Penang today is also experiencing a shift in food culture, from the now-familiar “beratur” or lining-up culture to a deeper interest among locals and tourists in the origins, stories and value behind the food they consume.
“People do not just eat anymore. They ask questions. This shows that Penang is not only known for food, but for having a good food ecosystem,” he said, adding that this allows fresh opportunities to tap from food processing to new age edible packaging of the famous Penang food.
"We want our food to be available everywhere here and globally."
Chow stressed that food entrepreneurship is part of the creative economy under Penang2030, involving not just cooking, but branding, packaging, certification, logistics and digital marketing.
“FoodPreneur Expo, together with the Foodpreneur Global Summit and Foodpreneur LAB, brings ideas, franchising and OEM business models, industry sharing and agency support under one roof.
This is how creativity is translated into viable businesses and how a complete ecosystem is built,” he said, adding that it could also benefit the wider northern region,” he said. - December 16, 2025.
