Opening Address by Dr Tan Lee Kim, Director-General (Food Administration) and Deputy CEO of Singapore Food Agency, at Singapore Food Toxicology Conference and Workshop

Professor Tan Soo Yong, Chairman of the Singapore Food Toxicology Network

Distinguished Guests

Ladies and Gentlemen

Good morning

1.  It is my great pleasure to join you today at the inaugural Singapore Food Toxicology Conference and Workshop. This gathering marks a significant milestone in Singapore’s journey towards advancing food safety through innovative approaches in toxicology.

2.  With technological advances and a global shift towards sustainability and resilience, new food sources and production systems are rapidly transforming our food systems. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation’s recent Food Safety Foresight Programme identified 44 emerging food innovations that are expected to transform the future food landscape by 2050. These innovations include novel protein sources, cultivated meats, and precision fermentation technologies. FAO’s foresight exercise emphasised the need for food authorities and other stakeholders to proactively prepare for the safe introduction of these food innovations while protecting public health and food safety.

3.  Since 2020, the Singapore Food Agency, SFA, has approved several novel foods following safety assessments. SFA’s pre-market approval included cultivated meat from Eat Just and Vow, novel precision fermentation products like Solein, and 16 insect species for human consumption.

4.  To address the food safety challenges arising from new food sources and production systems, testing methodologies and regulatory frameworks must be continually refined based on the latest scientific knowledge. New Approach Methodologies or NAMs are fast emerging as innovative tools for safety assessments by offering faster, cost-effective, and more human-relevant toxicological data than conventional animal testing. The integration of NAMs within Next Generation Risk Assessment (NGRA) frameworks enables more comprehensive evaluation of complex food systems by integrating multiple data streams, exposure considerations, and accounting for population variability. Together, NAMs and NGRA enhance our capacity to identify, assess, and manage new and unknown hazards arising from emerging food innovations.

5.  The global regulatory landscape is evolving rapidly to embrace these innovations. In April 2025, US FDA announced plans to phase out animal testing in the development of monoclonal antibodies and other drugs. This change aims to accelerate adoption of human-relevant methods such as organs-on-chips, computational modelling, and artificial intelligence (AI)-based models, which can improve the accuracy of toxicity assessment while reducing animal use.

6.  Similarly, the European Commission is preparing a “Roadmap Towards Phasing Out Animal Testing for Chemical Safety Assessments” which will be published by the first quarter of 2026. The roadmap will outline milestones and specific actions to be implemented in the short to long term to eventually phase out animal testing.

7.  In Asia, China National Centre for Food Safety Risk Assessment (CFSA) is actively developing and implementing a roadmap for NAMs and NGRA. South Korea's Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) has long established the Korean Center for the Validation of Alternative Methods (KoCVAM) to support the development and validation of NAMs. The Centre has recently made significant strides in revising regulatory frameworks to accept selected NAMs-based data for pharmaceuticals.

8.  In SFA, we recognise that traditional toxicological approaches, while important, may not fully address the complexities of new food sources and food production systems. This is why we are taking decisive steps to build NAMs and NGRA capabilities in Singapore’s ecosystem.

9.  Through the Singapore Food Story R&D Programme 1.0 Theme 3 Food Safety Science and Innovation Grant Call launched in 2021, several joint collaborative projects between researchers from A*STAR, NUS and SFA on the safety assessment of novel alternative proteins have recently concluded. Notable outcomes include the establishment of an in vitro NAMs-based testing platform for assessing various toxicological endpoints such as genotoxicity, endocrine disruption, and immunogenicity in cultivated meat and seafood. Additionally, researchers developed a comprehensive workflow combining immunoassays, proteomic mass spectrometry and bioinformatics tools to predict allergenicity in novel alternative proteins.

10.  Earlier this year, we launched the Singapore Food Story R&D Programme 2.0 Food Safety Main Grant call. Recognising that existing NAMs are predominantly developed using data and biological materials from the Western population, this latest grant call aims to develop and validate new approaches that include Asian phenotypes for a more relevant toxicity assessment of chemical hazards in novel foods.

11.  Today, we are pleased to partner with the Singapore Food Toxicology Network on this two-part event. The conference on day 1 provides a scientific platform for local and international stakeholders from academia, industry, and regulatory agencies to explore cutting-edge developments in NAMs, while the accompanying workshop on day 2 will foster meaningful discussions on NAMs and NGRA implementation challenges, opportunities, and future directions in Singapore’s food safety evaluation. The collaborative and multidisciplinary environment will be instrumental in shaping the evolution of chemical risk assessment approaches based on NAMs and NGRA for regulatory use.

12.  In closing, I encourage all of you to engage actively, share your ideas and expertise, and forge new relationships. I hope the conference and workshop would inspire you to consider new areas of research in toxicology. Together, your insights and expertise will help shape the next chapter of Singapore's Food Story.

13.  I would also like to extend my appreciation to the Singapore Food Toxicology Network Executive Committee who have made this conference possible. By working collaboratively, we can build a safer and more resilient food safety system. 

14.  Thank you, and I wish you a productive session.