Speech by Mr Damian Chan, CEO of the Singapore Food Agency at the Asia-Pacific Agri-Food Innovation Summit, Singapore International Agri-Food Week

Excellencies,

Distinguished Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

1.  Good morning, and welcome to Day 2 of the Asia-Pacific Agri-Food Innovation Summit 2025.

2.  It is my great pleasure to share with you how Singapore is looking at food resilience through innovation and collaboration, as we continue our important discussions on building resilient and innovative food systems across the Asia-Pacific region. 

Singapore's Evolving Food Story

3.  Yesterday, Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Ms Grace Fu outlined Singapore's refreshed approach to food resilience through our Singapore Food Story 2, or SFS 2. As the agency responsible for ensuring and securing a supply of safe food for Singapore, the Singapore Food Agency plays a central role in implementing this.

4.  Our four food pillars – diversify imports, grow local, stockpile and global partnerships – work together to ensure food resilience for Singapore. As Minister Fu shared, we have sharpened our approach to better address the evolving challenges we face.

Bridging Innovation and Implementation 

5.  As we implement these strategies, we recognise that innovation is crucial to overcoming the challenges our food system faces. Through the Singapore Food Story R&D Programme, we prioritise research that tackles our most pressing challenges like enhancing productivity and yield, overcoming Singapore’s constraints of limited land and resources, as well as reducing production costs. We also actively engage various ecosystem players to identify R&D and innovations that could be piloted at local farms. Today, I am heartened that some of these have successfully transitioned into pilot deployments. Let me share three examples.

6.  Fish farming in a space-constrained Singapore presents a unique challenge that requires innovative R&D solutions. Our farms must operate at much higher intensities than conventional aquaculture farms, which lead to excessive waste production. This creates a cascade of problems like poor fish health, environmental degradation, limited productivity and increased operating costs. Recognising this critical need, researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) collaborated with Singapore Aquaculture Technologies (SAT) and E & ST Environmental to develop a sustainable, efficient wastewater treatment system. Using a novel simultaneous nitrification and denitrification technology, it removes over 80% nitrate-nitrogen from aquaculture wastewater. This technology enhances farm productivity while minimising environmental impact in high-density fish farming. The project has progressed from the earlier phase of pilot scale demonstration to on-site test-bedding at commercial farms, where early results show promising improvements in water quality and operational efficiency. This technology puts our local fish farms in a better position to scale their operations sustainably.

7.  Another major challenge faced by the aquaculture industry is limited fish growth rates and high mortalities caused by disease outbreaks. This is particularly critical for Asian seabass, which is one of the top three fishes in both local and ASEAN production with significant market potential. Researchers at the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) developed functional fish feeds enhanced with encapsulated probiotics and curcumin, delivering up to 25 per cent growth improvement and stronger pathogen resistance in Asian seabass fingerlings. Supported by follow-on funding under phase 2 of the SFS R&D Programme, they are now collaborating with Temasek Polytechnic and Kemin Industries, among others, to validate the performance of their functional feeds at some of the local farms.

8.  On the agricultural front, existing crop protection technologies designed for outdoor farming are not well suited for indoor environments. Without effective pest management, farms would face crop losses that could impact their productivity and profitability. A joint team from NUS and Republic Polytechnic, in collaboration with local farms, developed an integrated pest management solution specifically tailored for indoor agriculture. This includes a comprehensive local pest database that identifies the specific pest thriving in Singapore’s farming conditions, enabling targeted pest control strategies. This nature-based approach reduces reliance on synthetic pesticides that are unsuitable for indoor farming while maintaining effective crop protection, allowing our local farms to achieve consistent yields that support commercial viability.

Introducing the Agritech Translation Programme 

9.  As we continue to push the frontiers of innovation, I am excited to share with you our new initiative - the Agritech Translation Programme also known as AgTP (A-G-T-P).

10.  In collaboration with NUS, this programme addresses our agriculture ecosystem’s need for an intermediate facility to test, adapt and scale innovation. It also provides a shared platform where farmers can test solutions in a data-driven way without disrupting day-to-day commercial operations. This is achieved through a dedicated greenhouse Translation Facility (TF) which enables test bedding to reveal implementation challenges. These can then be solved to de-risk technology adoption.

11.  Since the programme started in March this year, the TF has hosted four projects and are onboarding six more. These projects involved collaboration between researchers and industry partners with scope ranging from identifying faster growing crop varieties to optimising cultivation practices, such as nursery management and nutrient temperature optimisation. These projects have showed promising results, with one project identifying seed varieties with 10% faster growth and another achieving a 1.5-fold increase in yield through nutrient cooling.

12.  Critically, the TF is agnostic to the source of innovation. Beyond research institutes, we actively welcome collaborations with industry stakeholders and technology providers on interdisciplinary solutions that can address challenges both locally and regionally. 

Looking Ahead 

13.  As we look to the future, SFA remains committed to ensuring that Singapore's food supply is safe, secure, and sustainable. We will continue to adapt our approaches and strategies as global conditions evolve, and adopt measures underpinned by evidence and practical considerations.

14.  The conversations and connections made at this summit will undoubtedly contribute to this effort. I encourage you to engage actively in the sessions ahead, share your experiences, and explore new and more opportunities for collaboration.

15.  Before I close, I would like to invite all of you to visit SFA's booth at the Agrifood Tech Expo Asia on Level 1, Hall A. Our team is delighted to share more about our work, answer any questions that you may have, and explore potential areas of collaboration.

16.  I believe that it is our collective resolve to build food systems that are not only resilient to current challenges but adaptable to future uncertainties. The innovations and partnerships forged here will play a crucial role in seeding future collaborations to feed our growing populations sustainably.

17.  Thank you, and I wish you all a great week ahead at Singapore International Agri-Food Week.