Agencies to shake up farm rules - all for agri-food innovation

Singapore

CHALLENGES like climate change also present Singapore with opportunities for innovation, Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry Koh Poh Koon noted in a speech on Tuesday.

And, with the agri-food tech industry - one sector that climate change has made more relevant - Dr Koh said regulatory moves can help local players in emerging sectors to expand.

Public bodies such as the Ministry of Trade and Industry, the Singapore Food Agency and Enterprise Singapore will set up a regulatory sandbox for farms in the upcoming Agri-Food Innovation Park in Sungei Kadut, which is set to open by mid-2021.

The sandbox will allow a streamlined review of regulations - such as building, fire safety and other rules - that affect park tenants, and insights gleaned could then be extended to the rest of the farming industry.

The new inter-agency Food Regulatory Connectivity Initiative is also working to get made-in-Singapore food standards recognised by regulators abroad, in a bid to turn the Republic into a "trusted food trading hub".

For example, talks are under way on Chinese recognition of Singapore's meat and seafood products, which could open a new export market for companies, Dr Koh told the House.

"The government must be prepared to relook at our rules and regulations as we grow new sectors," he noted, during the Budget debates.

Dr Koh also announced that the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star) will launch a new "innovation factory" in the Jurong Innovation District in 2021.

The planned co-working space, dubbed the Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (SIMTech) Innovation Factory, will help small businesses to design and develop products, such as medtech devices and electromechanical modules.

"As we continue to anchor and seek out new growth areas, new exciting jobs will be created," Dr Koh said.

"Innovation is key to our continued success... Not every individual project or enterprise will succeed.

"But, collectively, we will move forward. We must not be afraid to venture into new frontiers."