Exploration of global Halal food SMEs research through state approach: bibliometric analysis

Purpose This study aims to explore the country’s contribution to research on halal food small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) taken from the Scopus database for 10 years from 2013 to 2022 so that it can provide an overview of the effort that needs to be made by the government to improve research in this field. Design/methodology/approach The method used in this study was bibliometric analysis. The data comes from the Scopus database over the past 10 years (2013–2022). To create data visualization and network analysis using VOSviewer, Scimago Graphica, Bibliometrix and MS Excel. Findings Research on halal food SMEs has grown by almost 25%, with Malaysia leading with 447 publications. The UK is the leading country in publishing research articles with 44 journals. Malaysia has the most institutions (40 institutions for 25% globally). Malaysia has most research funding agencies (22 for 14% globally). Malaysia has the highest number of citations in halal food SMEs, with 3547 citations, followed by China and Indonesia. Malaysia has also the highest number of collaborating researchers and the most invitations. Future research focuses on sustainability, social issues, Internet of Things technologies, innovative technologies and strategies to increase productivity and competitiveness. Originality/value This research is a reference and overview of future research in halal food SMEs with the perspective of a country contribution angle. It provides input to the government on what needs to be done to develop research in the halal field in line with the goal of a country becoming the center of the global halal industry.