The Netherlands in the Singapore International Agri-Food Week
The Singapore International Agri-food Week (SIAW) 2024 is one of the major regional events for agri-food technology held annually that brings together innovators and leaders in the agri-food sector. This year, it was held from 18-22 November at the Marina Bay Sands Expo & Convention Centre, which hosted several events linked to SIAW. These events tied in with the focus of SIAW, which aims to help develop and strengthen novel and sustainable methods of food production. With the range of events, SIAW drew in people from a variety of organizations, including regulatory bodies, private companies, knowledge institutions, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). These organizations were involved in discussions linked to the regulation of novel foods, scientific advancements in agricultural methods, building resilience in agri-food systems, and more.
For Singapore, it was a crucial event to showcase its agri-food technology players and ecosystem to a global playing field. Singapore is a land-scare nation, with less than 1% of its land allocated for agriculture, and it is also highly dependent on food imports, with more than 90% of food consumed in the nation coming from overseas. In the past 5 years, Singapore has been developing it’s agri-food ecosystem, aiming to boost food security through multiple fronts. There has been a push for more local agriculture, aquaculture, and egg production facilities to bolster local food production, with the government providing financial and advisory support for companies in these industries.
Other than actual agri-food production, Singapore has also tried to position itself as an R&D center for agri-food technologies in this region. In recent years, there are many research groups here working on technologies, for improving the yield of high-tech farming and aquaculture, and on the valorization of food waste streams. In the area of novel foods like alternative proteins, Singapore also has progressive regulations to support the sampling and sale of products, and is also building up a research and commercialization eco-system. There are many contract development and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs) and start-up incubators to take alternative protein research beyond the lab and to enter the market.
To highlight local agri-food stakeholders at SIAW, the Singapore government agencies and companies also did a lot to elevate their booths. The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) held multiple food tastings daily to showcase food recipes that included alternative protein products and locally produced food. There was a wide assortment of produce featured, including plant-based cheese, cultivated chicken and quail, as well as locally grown vegetables. There were also impressive displays by local solution providers for high-tech farming, including vertical farming systems, indoor farm pollination solutions, and plant breeding technology.
Strengthening agri-food collaboration between the Netherlands and Singapore
In collaboration with the Singaporean partners, the Dutch have also taken root in the agri-food ecosystem in Singapore. In the R&D aspect, Wageningen University & Research (WUR) has had long-standing collaboration with Nanyang Technological University (NTU) Food Science & Technology (FST) program with the Food Science joint-degree programs. More recently, the NTU-CREATE program was started with WUR, spearheading a plant breeding program tailored for indoor farm conditions. From the commercial perspective, Dutch companies like Priva have been providing farm management equipment and software to Singaporean companies for years, and there are Dutch companies running indoor farms in Singapore, like Urban Farming Partners and Growy. Dutch alternative protein companies are also active here, with The Protein Brewery and Meatable obtaining regulatory approval for their products.
During SIAW, The Dutch Agricultural Network (LAN) participated in a Regulator’s Forum and Roundtable on Novel Foods Regulations, hosted by SFA. The two events encouraged an exchange of updates and perspectives from government agencies, intergovernmental organizations, research institutes, and private companies surrounding novel foods like cultivated meat and fermented proteins. There, the LAN attaché shared about the mission driven innovation policy for agrifood, and highlighted the government’s commitment to the development of new protein sources, by supporting and working with all stakeholders in the Dutch Diamond Approach.
To spur further collaboration and development for Dutch companies intending to expand to the region, The Netherlands also participated in SIAW with a pavilion, featuring 9 companies from high-tech farming, alternative proteins, and financial services. Together with this delegation of 9 companies, multiple events were also organized to increase their visibility and network in Singapore. At the SIAW event location, there was a 1-hour Netherlands seminar, featuring a panel discussion and presentations for the Dutch companies to showcase their capabilities and expertise. We also held a networking session at the pavilion, featuring a food sampling by Vivici B.V., which attracted a large crowd around the Pavilion. The networking session was attended by Singapore Food Agency (SFA) CEO Mr Damian Chan, and several other Singaporean stakeholders from the public, private, and research sectors.
In addition, to further enrich the companies’ experience in Singapore, we offered off-site visits that they could attend. There was an off-site visit to Nurasa, a food-tech startup incubator/accelerator under Temasek, which tied in with a Spanish networking event. The attendees all did a pitch during this event as well, marketing their respective organizations to a range of stakeholders on-site. We had another off-site visit to Artisan Green, a high-tech indoor farm with expansion plans in the upcoming years. There, attendees gained exposure to the local high-tech farming scene and pitched their solutions and expertise to the host company as well.
The necessity for more sustainable Food production
In this edition of SIAW, there has been an increasing focus for more sustainable and resilient food production. With a changing climate, we will have to adapt to it and adjust conventional food production methods accordingly. Moreover with the current scale of food production, there is a need to lower its resource use and carbon footprint to ensure a sustainable environmental impact in the future. Singapore has a research and business eco-system furthering the research and commercialization of sustainable and resilient agri-food technologies, and these technologies will become increasingly relevant on a global level.
If you would like to learn more about collaboration opportunities for sustainable food production in Singapore, please reach out to our Agricultural Advisor, Lucas Jiang, at sin-lvvn@minbuza.nl.