Let's have pride in home-grown produce

WHEN it comes to food production, Singapore has a specific goal. While the country will continue to diversify its food import sources, it aims to ramp up local production so it can meet 30 per cent of the country's nutritional needs by 2030. Achieving this level of self-sufficiency will help guard against global supply-chain shocks and crop yield fluctuations that may come as climate change persists.

Rising to the challenge are home-grown farms that employ sustainable, high-tech solutions. Through technology, these farms overcome land constraints to improve crop yield and production so that Singapore avoids heavy reliance on imported produce, allowing us to progressively strengthen food security.

Much has been done to help these businesses to thrive and grow. However, to truly achieve food resilience, we also need to build long-standing pride in our local produce.

Agri-tech leading the way

Land constraints have led to a lack of "locally grown" products. Of Singapore's total of 720 sq km, under 1 per cent is used for conventional farming; the country imports some 90 per cent of its food, said the Singapore Food Agency (SFA).

No wonder, then, that the country's people are not exactly clamouring for locally-grown produce: There just may not be enough to go around. Farms in Lim Chu Kang and Sungei Tengah produced just 14 per cent of leafy vegetables and 26 per cent of eggs in 2019, said the SFA.

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However, we have made good progress to push up those numbers, with companies adopting a high-tech, "farms of the future" approach. Think sustainable vegetable farms that can produce crops with the help of technology such as AI systems that monitor the growth of leafy greens, and water-efficient, automated irrigation systems.

Financiers such as OCBC Bank are funding such solutions. For example, OCBC extended a green loan to home-grown business Netatech, which produces everyday vegetables like red bayam, cai xin and nai bai.

It employs automated processes with cloud-based-controls, from seeding machines that can plant 40,000 seeds in an hour - a task that would take more than 10 hours by hand - to sustainable solutions like harvesting rain water and managing storm water runoff to meet demands for water on the farm. Some 70 per cent of the farm's water use goes into irrigation for its crops.

LivFresh Farms is another agri-tech firm to watch out for. Using IoT and data analytics, it monitors the health and progress of its crops at its 2-acre facility to produce local favourites like bok choy, choy sum and baby kale in a sustainable fashion.

Chillers and control systems keep the climate just right for the crops, and a closed-feed hydroponic water system means that the facility uses 86 per cent less water than traditional farming methods.

LivFresh got up and running during the pandemic with a green loan from OCBC. When its full five acres are built up, it will be able to produce more than one million kg of produce a year.

Alternative proteins, too, are on the rise, with consumer-based interest in plant-based pork and chicken growing seven-fold; demand for plant-based beef tripled between the end of 2019 and 2020. Lately, there has also been interest in plant-based seafood items.

Growthwell Foods is one company catering to this trend, having created a range of products from plant-based chicken to seafood items. In order to boost the protein content in its products without affecting flavour, it invested in an Israeli startup that makes a chickpea isolate that can be added to a variety of products. Growthwell Foods recently raised S$22 million in a Series A round of funding led by private equity firm Creadev, which included returning backers like Temasek.

Innovation drives from home-grown companies will help propel Singapore towards its "30 by 30" goal. But the country must also have shoppers who consistently reach for local produce on the grocery shelves. In other words, demand must rise in tandem with production.

Unlike countries like Britain or France, Singapore does not have a rich farming history. The idea of "locally-grown" thus does not quite carry the same cachet.

In fact, the OCBC Climate Index, a measurement of environmental sustainability awareness and climate action among Singaporeans, found that only 14 per cent of Singaporeans purchase products that are sourced locally or within the South-east Asian region every time they go shopping.

Affordability and cost

One of the top barriers to adopting more sustainable lifestyle practices is affordability and cost, the Index also found. Adopting high-tech solutions to produce abundant, quality crops, coupled with the high demand for land, also means higher price tags on locally-grown produce - which can cost anywhere between 10 and 20 per cent more than produce from other regions such as Malaysia.

Thankfully, it seems mindsets will change. According to the Index, 71 per cent of Singaporeans are willing to pay more for products if they are convinced that those have a positive impact on people and planet.

Our high-tech farms certainly help reduce the carbon emissions from production processes, and from transport. Those like Netatech are even developing lower-carbon supply chains - its "zero-mile farm" in Tampines is a high-rise vertical farm set up on the side of a Housing Development Board block of flats.

The vegetables grown there are harvested on-site and sold to the community.

And what Singaporeans can take a huge amount of pride in is that the quality of local produce is extremely high. Grown in controlled environments, the items consumers receive are pesticide-free and clean - traits that consumers are increasingly looking out for. Importantly, local produce tastes great, as companies even use their technology to engineer for taste.

Agri-tech company Archisen, responsible for the systems at high-yielding indoor farm Commonwealth Greens, routinely successfully adjusts nutrients fed to crops in its systems. It thus can encourage crops to produce more of the compounds that are responsible for their taste and unique flavour. This means tweaking a crop "recipe" to produce for example, a sweeter taste for kale, or a certain texture in kai lan that consumers might prefer.

Such capabilities - as well as a desire to support home-grown producers - is why some top restaurants here make it a point to source at least some of their ingredients locally.

Supermarkets here are beginning to populate their shelves with more local produce, even using labels like SG Fresh or display stands that draw attention to these home-grown items. Over time, it is hoped, consumers will reach for this over produce from elsewhere - and be proud to say that what's on their plate is grown right here on this little red dot.

• The writer is managing director, head of Middle Market and Services Enterprises, Global Enterprise Banking, OCBC Bank

Interest in home-grown produce on the rise

INTEREST in home-grown produce is on the rise, with some top restaurants increasing their use of local ingredients.

When it comes to using locally-grown produce in their daily lives, the inaugural OCBC Climate Index, a measurement of environmental awareness and sustainable lifestyle practices among Singapore residents, found:

• 88 per cent of Singaporeans know that buying locally-grown produce is a more eco-friendly option.
• Only 14 per cent purchase products that are sourced locally or within the South-east Asian region every time they go out shopping.
• 56 per cent encourage, or have used social media to encourage, friends and family to buy locally-sourced produce where possible.
• 39 per cent participate in urban farming initiatives either in their communities or at home.