Global Agri-Food Scientific Symposium – Dr Koh Poh Koon

Speech by Dr Koh Poh Koon, Senior Minister of State for Sustainability and the Environment, at the Global Agri-Food Scientific Symposium on 21 November 2024

Distinguished guests

Ladies and gentlemen

1 It is my pleasure to join you at the third Global Agri-Food Scientific Symposium. I am glad to see everyone gathered here again to exchange knowledge and strengthen our collective capabilities in a range of topics including aquaculture, agriculture, future foods, nutrition and food safety.

2 The theme of this year’s symposium, “Innovation and Sustainability: Transforming the Food Landscape”, reflects our shared commitment to shape the future of food in a world facing many challenges.

Global food production in a changing climate

3 Over the past years, we have witnessed the impact of climate change, which has disrupted food production and exacerbated food insecurity globally. For example, heatwaves across Europe have severely reduced yields of key agricultural crops like olives and wheat by up to 30%, contributing to the increase in food prices globally. Asia has also experienced extreme heat with temperatures soaring above 40 degrees Celsius for extended periods. On the other hand, the El Nino has led to more frequent and intense thunderstorms in several parts of the world, disrupting agricultural production. Other factors such as geopolitical tensions and disease outbreaks have also contributed to the challenges faced by global food supply chains. All of us as consumers will be impacted by these challenges.

Role of science & technology to develop the local agri-food sector

4 As a country that imports more than 90 per cent of our food, Singapore is particularly vulnerable to global food supply disruptions. While import diversification is a key part of our food security strategy, it is equally crucial to increase local food production.

5 Given Singapore’s unique challenges, we would need innovative approaches to make our food supply more secure and resilient. By harnessing science and technology, we can develop cutting-edge solutions that not only meet rising food demand, but also minimise environmental impact. Embracing science and technology advancements will help us grow local agri-food capabilities and create more resilient and sustainable food systems for the future.

Singapore Food Story R&D Programme

6 Under the Singapore Food Story (SFS) R&D Programme, over S$300 million has been committed to fund projects that address key challenges of our agri-food industry in urban agriculture, aquaculture, future foods and food safety.

7 The programme supports early-stage and translational R&D focused on demonstrating commercialisation potential, through the Seed and Research Translation Grants, respectively. The first Future Foods grant call was launched last year to improve process development and better enable the future manufacturing of alternative proteins.

8 The SFS R&D Programme has achieved some early successes with tangible outcomes. For instance, a research team from the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory (TLL) is exploring advanced breeding strategies to generate crop varieties with high quality traits for controlled environment agriculture. They have worked with local farms to develop genetically superior kale and choy sum cultivars. Associate Professor Chew Fook Tim will be sharing more about the latest developments later.

9 Earlier this week at the Singapore International Agri-Food Week (SIAW) Welcome Reception, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry, Mr Gan Kim Yong, has announced that as of mid-November 2024, around $40 million in funding has been awarded for the Seed, Research Translation and Future Foods grant calls under the SFS R&D programme. The awarded projects seek to use precision genetic tools to generate seeds with superior traits tailored to controlled environment agriculture, develop effective disease management tools for aquaculture, and lower the cost of cultivated meat production.

10 To foster the continued development of impactful and innovative solutions, I am pleased to announce the launch of the second Future Foods grant call under SFS 2.0. The grant call will focus on strengthening the nutrition and functionality of alternative protein products to boost consumer acceptance. I invite you to collaborate with technology providers and potential adopters to submit your innovative solutions.

Collaboration among stakeholders

11 Beyond research and development, it is crucial to collaborate with various stakeholders within the ecosystem to build a resilient and innovative sector.

12 For the aquaculture sector, we have brought together members from industry, nature groups, academia and research institutions to discuss how to co-create solutions. Last year, we witnessed the formalisation of the AquaPolis programme, where partners work together to uplift the local aquaculture industry. The AquaPolis Technologies Industry Consortium (AquaTIC), launched in October this year, is an ecosystem development initiative within AquaPolis that brings together researchers, farmers and solution providers to address common productivity challenges, creating opportunities for rapid test-bedding of research solutions and accelerating technology adoption by industry. We also launched the Singapore Aquaculture Plan earlier this week, which embodies our collective vision and roadmap for the Aquaculture sector. We will continue to build efforts to facilitate greater industry involvement and drive the translation of industry-relevant outcomes.

13 Today, you can look forward to hearing from our international experts on the importance of building a vibrant ecosystem and developing solutions to meet industry needs. For example, Professor Ross Houston, Director of Genetics and Innovation at Benchmark Genetics, who leads global breeding programmes for Atlantic salmon and white leg shrimp, will delve into how reproductive biotechnologies and genomic tools are currently being applied in practice. He will also share the next frontiers in their application to benefit the global aquaculture industry. Jeroen Willemsen, Lead for Protein Transition at Foodvalley Netherlands, or better known as the Protein Commissioner of The Netherlands, has launched several key national initiatives such as the Dutch National Protein Strategy, helping to drive global food innovations for the past 25 years. His talk will offer insights into building an ecosystem for the next stage of the protein transition, with an emphasis on the synergy between the Dutch and Asian alternative protein systems.

14 To accelerate our efforts in research translation, SFA had also partnered Rethink to organise a Later-Stage Pitching Session at the Asia-Pacific Agri-Food Innovation Summit this year. This session provided a platform for startups and innovators from across the agri-food value chain to showcase disruptive solutions, connect potential investors to industry experts, and foster collaboration within the agri-food sector. We look forward to having the winning team present their innovative technologies at the Symposium tomorrow.

Conclusion

15 As we continue to write the next chapter of our Singapore Food Story for future generations, a supportive and conducive research environment is extremely important to address the multi-faceted challenges faced by the agri-food sector. This includes forging close partnerships between the international community, academia, industry, consumers, and the government.

16 I hope today’s discussions will catalyse more R&D collaboration to strengthen the science and technology capabilities of our food ecosystem and translate research outcomes into practical real-world applications, enhancing industry productivity and profitability.

17 I wish all of you a fruitful and meaningful discussion ahead. Thank you.