Singapore food output gets S$80 million boost with opening of Greenphyto’s vertical farm, tallest in the world
With growing chambers at 23 metres tall, the facility has an output 45 times higher than traditional farming methods
[SINGAPORE] Agritech startup Greenphyto launched its flagship multi-storey hydroponics farm on Wednesday (Jan 7), a facility that it says can produce up to 2,000 tonnes of vegetables a year by relying heavily on automation.
This puts the farm’s output at about 45 times that of traditional farming methods.
Occupying around 2 hectares of land along Tukang Innovation Drive in Jurong West, the S$80 million facility’s growing chambers stand just over 23 m tall. At the launch event, Guinness World Records recognised it as the world’s tallest vertical farm.
Susan Chong, Greenphyto’s founder and chief executive officer, previously told The Business Times that the farm focuses on fast-growing leafy vegetables such as nai bai, chye sim and other Asian greens, which are staples in local diets and well-suited to automated production.
To grow the vegetables, Greenphyto uses a proprietary farming system developed in-house, which enables most of the farming process – including seeding, nutrient delivery, crop movement and climate control – to be fully automated. Harvesting and packaging remain semi-automated and still require manual work.
Artificial intelligence (AI) and a digital twin of the farm are also used to monitor plant growth and plan production weeks in advance, so output is scheduled to match customer orders, and not fluctuating with weather or seasonal conditions.
Technology and AI have also enabled Greenphyto to optimise energy use and operate with about a fifth of the manpower required under conventional farming methods, Chong told BT.
A significant conversation
She said at the launch of the facility that the idea for Greenphyto stemmed from a conversation she had with President Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who officiated the event, when he was the anchor minister for Jurong GRC.
This was around 2011, she told BT in the interview, when she was helming Greenpac and teaching residents in Taman Jurong how to grow vegetables using hydroponics systems, as part of the sustainable packaging company’s community initiatives.
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Tharman suggested that Chong donate the hydroponics systems instead, which eventually led to the founding of Greenphyto in 2014 and more than a decade of research and development.
The startup’s system was developed in part through support from the Digital Leaders Programme of the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA).
Launched in 2021 to help enterprises accelerate digital transformation, the programme enabled Greenphyto’s senior management to attend digital transformation masterclasses and tech discovery workshops, IMDA said in a statement.
It also supported the company’s efforts to build in-house capabilities through the hiring of a digital team comprising data engineers and software developers.
Greenphyto is now planning a technology spinoff, Arber.ai, which will provide consultancy services to help enterprises in Singapore and overseas use emerging technologies to transform their businesses, IMDA said.
The agency added that it will facilitate connections between Greenphyto and other businesses keen to explore potential technology adoption and collaboration opportunities.
Aside from Tharman, guests at the vertical farm’s opening included Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu, Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment Zaqy Mohamad, and Senior Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office Desmond Tan.
Speaking to the media at the event, Zaqy said Greenphyto shows how agritech “can be used in a significant way” to support Singapore’s revised food goals.
He added that such farms show that agriculture can be run more like a manufacturing process, enabling much higher yields despite limitations in land, manpower and energy use.
Boosting support
In November, Singapore replaced its original goal of producing 30 per cent of its nutritional needs – including fish, eggs and vegetables – by 2030.
One of its new targets is to produce 20 per cent of its fibre consumption by 2035, a category that includes leafy and fruited vegetables, bean sprouts and mushrooms.
Asked how the government is ensuring that smaller, less capital-intensive farms can remain viable as the sector adopts more high-tech, automated models, Zaqy said funding schemes are being reviewed to provide stronger support.
This includes capital assistance to help farms upgrade and extend their operations, as well as measures beyond technology adoption – such as strengthening R&D, exposing farmers to overseas best practices, and helping farms become more climate-resilient.
Since January 2025, Greenphyto’s vegetables have been sold under the Hydrogreens label at 95 retail stores.
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