LINZ, Austria — From the foothills of the Alps, a British food exporter is shipping the world's most popular ursine candy to the chewy treat's next horizon — a vast territory stretching from Jewish communities on the Mediterranean shore to Muslim neighborhoods in the tropics of Singapore.

        While gummi bears are childhood staples in Europe and the Americas, aversion to the pork-based gelatin that gives the candy its trademark rubbery texture has long ruled them out in regions where religious law governs the daily diet.

        These lands are becoming an international battleground for candy giants such as Germany's Haribo AG, inventor of the original gummi bear back in 1922 and maker of its latest innovation: a gelatin-free gummi acceptable to religious Muslims and Jews.

        A sleepy town known for its winding Danube riverfront and medieval cobblestone town square, Linz may seem an unlikely beachhead for piercing markets from Saudi Arabia to Singapore. But Haribo's bright yellow factory here, lined by a trim of green and red dancing bears, is squarely entering the global economy.

        “It means that we can go on being the global leader,” said factory manager Andreas Nickenig, wearing a white lab coat as he inspected a giant stainless steel pot for boiling gummi ingredients. “We can't go into these markets with our current product.”

        Helping to open the market is Neville Finlay, a yarmulke-wearing exporter from Great Britain who will ship Haribo's new lineup under his own brand, Finlay's Finest.

        From its 17 European factories, Haribo already sends candies to 43 countries from Japan to Mexico. To launch gelatin-free gummis, Finlay is talking not only with Saudi Arabia and Singapore but with Jordan, the United Arab Emirates and Malaysia. Kosher gummis already go to Israel and the United States.

        Finlay foresees combined Muslim and Jewish sales of $2 billion annually — at least as big as Europe.

        One good sign: Sales of pork-free gummi knockoffs are thriving in predominantly Muslim countries where Haribo's traditional candy is banned.

        In one potential destination, a supermarket in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, shopper Murni Muhiddin picked up a pack of Yupi gummis made in neighboring Indonesia. The stamp showed they pass Muslim law, which not only bars pork consumption but requires special slaughtering methods for other meats.

        “For us Muslims, these things count, how an animal is slaughtered,” Mr. Murni said.

        Bonn-based Haribo embarked on four-year scientific effort to develop a gummi that's heat resistant as well as kosher for Jews and halal for Muslims.

        Animal-based gelatin is made from ground bones and cartilage. The new ingredient is a bacteria-based compound. It's commonly used as a thickening agent in salad dressings and sauces.

        The gelatin-free gummis are softer than their rubbery animal-based cousins but come in the same 46 shapes — from traditional bears to Coke bottles, airplanes and glow worms — as well as new ones. For Israel, there's “alphabet gummis” molded with Hebrew letters to look like Scrabble tiles.

        Gelatin-free gummis cost 20 percent more to make than meat-based ones. But the difference is narrowing as prices for beef and pork gelatin are pushed up by dwindling supplies due to the cow disease scare in Europe.

        Haribo shipped its first 40-ton batch of gelatin-free, kosher gummis to Israel and the United States last month — but not before going through a few hitches.

        “The first time we made it, we got a marmalade you could spread on bread,” Mr. Finlay said. “And at the other extreme was something you could fill a swimming pool with and drive a truck across.”

        As well, the first order of Hebrew packaging was printed backward, because the local supplier didn't know the language is read right to left.

        Haribo's Linz plant is gearing up for a second 50-ton shipment, but Mr. Nickenig admits that shifting production between kosher and non-kosher is a “complicated, cumbersome and expensive affair.”

        While the bears don't need a rabbi's blessing, a rabbi must oversee production and inspect every ingredient. Every cooking vessel, collection bin and conveyer belt must be scrubbed down with boiling water to wash away impurities before kosher production begins.

        For halal shipments, a Muslim cleric stands in.

        Despite such complications, Haribo is confident enough to start production this summer in a new kosher plant in Turkey.

        “We're a family-owned company, and at first they didn't want to put their name on a product that was untested,” Mr. Nickenig said. “But this is the peak of global efforts, when a company like Haribo can recognize niches not being served and expand there.”

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