Korea's Noroo Holdings opens agri-solutions hub in Singapore

KOREAN industrial and chemicals group Noroo Holdings has opened its global agriculture solutions hub in Singapore. Noroo Singapore drives innovation in the food industry through its food-solutions business and agritech offerings, the company said on Tuesday.

In less than a year after incorporating, Noroo Holdings Singapore has secured more than S$1 million in revenue, and has imported close to a million canned food items into Singapore in the last month.

The global hub's food-solutions business brings hard-to-reach food items from around the world to Asia. Its first major contract brings European Union-certified food items, such as high-quality vegetables and meat from leading food producers in Ukraine to retailers in Singapore at a low cost.

Noroo said the Ukraine embassy paid an active and pivotal role in the deal by facilitating business relationships and negotiating for the most competitive prices.

Senik Dmytro, Ukraine's ambassador to Singapore, said: "There is a real opportunity for South-east Asia to benefit from Ukraine's role in the global food supply chain, and Noroo Singapore is paving the way to make this happen. We can lay the foundation for an ongoing partnership that is of mutual interest to Ukraine, Singapore and Asean."

The global agri-solutions hub will also build up the agri-tech arm of Noroo's business in Singapore. It will give farmers in South-east Asia more access to Noroo's seeds - for crops such as melons, tomatoes and peppers - which require fewer crop-protection measures such as fertilisers and chemicals.

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The hub will also have an opt-in arrangement under which Noroo Singapore will take farmers' produce to the market, bypassing middlemen and passing the savings to both farmers and consumers.

Noroo Singapore is also actively looking at other areas of innovation and will explore ways to increase its investment and presence in the indoor vertical farms and plant-based protein space.

Yip Hon Mun, chief executive of Noroo Singapore, said: "We have a timely window to tackle the structural issues surrounding food security by leveraging the right systems, infrastructure and technology. Singapore has proven itself to be a global frontrunner in this, which makes it the best strategic point to leapfrog Noroo's agri-solutions for the region."