SINGAPORE: Singapore will inject S$70 million (US$55 million) over the next five years to help local farms expand production capacity and build capabilities, as the country steps up efforts to strengthen food resilience amid growing global uncertainties.
The new funding tranche under the Agri-Food Cluster Transformation (ACT) Fund was announced by Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment Zaqy Mohamad on Wednesday (Mar 4), as he laid out his ministry's spending plans this year.
Introduced in April 2021, the ACT Fund helps local farmers upgrade their operations, such as purchasing equipment and adopting technologies that improve productivity. With the extension, the scheme will be renamed ACT Fund 2.
The measure is part of the Singapore Food Story 2 strategy, unveiled in November last year, which aims to bolster food resilience through four pillars: diversifying imports, growing local, stockpiling and forging global partnerships.
Singapore currently imports more than 90 per cent of its food. That heavy reliance leaves the country exposed to supply chain disruptions caused by climate change, disease outbreaks and geopolitical tensions – making stronger local production a priority.
“We have learnt many lessons from our 30 by 30 initiative. While it had successfully catalysed local production growth, mainly focusing on one pillar – grow local – left us vulnerable to the very disruptions that we sought to address,” Mr Zaqy said.
“A single-pillar approach, no matter how ambitious, cannot provide the food supply resilience that Singapore needs.”
However, growing local produce remains an important pillar of our food resilience strategy, he added.
“Local farms can provide us with a regenerative source of food, of fresh food in fact, that is maintained even during prolonged disruptions. More of our farms are moving towards controlled environments which makes them more climate-resilient and land-efficient.”
Under new local production targets, Singapore will focus on fibre and protein types that are feasible to be produced at scale efficiently.
Continue reading...
The new funding tranche under the Agri-Food Cluster Transformation (ACT) Fund was announced by Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment Zaqy Mohamad on Wednesday (Mar 4), as he laid out his ministry's spending plans this year.
Introduced in April 2021, the ACT Fund helps local farmers upgrade their operations, such as purchasing equipment and adopting technologies that improve productivity. With the extension, the scheme will be renamed ACT Fund 2.
The measure is part of the Singapore Food Story 2 strategy, unveiled in November last year, which aims to bolster food resilience through four pillars: diversifying imports, growing local, stockpiling and forging global partnerships.
Singapore currently imports more than 90 per cent of its food. That heavy reliance leaves the country exposed to supply chain disruptions caused by climate change, disease outbreaks and geopolitical tensions – making stronger local production a priority.
“We have learnt many lessons from our 30 by 30 initiative. While it had successfully catalysed local production growth, mainly focusing on one pillar – grow local – left us vulnerable to the very disruptions that we sought to address,” Mr Zaqy said.
“A single-pillar approach, no matter how ambitious, cannot provide the food supply resilience that Singapore needs.”
However, growing local produce remains an important pillar of our food resilience strategy, he added.
“Local farms can provide us with a regenerative source of food, of fresh food in fact, that is maintained even during prolonged disruptions. More of our farms are moving towards controlled environments which makes them more climate-resilient and land-efficient.”
Under new local production targets, Singapore will focus on fibre and protein types that are feasible to be produced at scale efficiently.
Continue reading...