Singapore Commits S$138 Million to Food Research as Climate and Supply Risks Grow

Research funding expands from growing food to keeping supplies moving

Singapore will invest S$138 million in food research over the next five years, adding the forecasting of climate risks, longer food shelf life and better stockpile management to research aimed at improving farms and food safety.

Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu announced the commitment on October 27, 2026, at the Asia-Pacific Agri-Food Innovation Summit at Suntec Convention Centre. The funding comes under Research, Innovation and Enterprise 2030, known as RIE2030, and covers five areas: aquaculture, agriculture, future foods, food safety and the newly added field of food supply resilience.

Singapore imports more than 90% of its food. Its research agenda therefore reaches beyond producing more vegetables or fish within its borders. It also aims to help the country anticipate trouble overseas, preserve food for longer and manage reserves when normal deliveries are interrupted.

Fu, who is also Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations, explained why local production must sit alongside other ways of securing supplies:

We cannot insulate ourselves from global disruptions simply by producing more food locally. We must instead build resilience through a diversified and adaptable food system.

The announcement also brings research institutions closer to businesses operating across the region. The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) signed a partnership with Singapore headquartered agri-food company JAPFA to develop practical solutions for tropical aquaculture, including fish health and digital farm management.

For households, the intended benefit is a food system better able to keep essential foods available during disruption. For farms, the priorities include healthier fish, crops suited to tropical conditions and production methods that use resources more efficiently.

How the new commitment compares with earlier funding

The S$138 million allocation follows two earlier food research funding commitments: S$144 million in 2020 and S$165 million in 2025. Together, the three announced amounts total S$447 million.

The latest allocation is S$27 million, or about 16.4%, below the 2025 tranche. Its scope nevertheless expands to include food supply resilience alongside the four established research areas. A breakdown of funding between the five areas and dates for applications were not announced.

Singapore's food research programme has developed through several stages:

• 2019: SFA and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) jointly developed the Singapore Food R&D Programme under RIE2020.
• 2020: Singapore committed S$144 million to food research.
• 2025: A further S$165 million was committed, with research targeting productivity, costs and practical use by industry.
• October 27, 2026: Fu announced S$138 million over the next five years under RIE2030, including research on supply resilience.

The programme under RIE2020 supported more than 60 research projects. Subsequent work has included the Seed Innovation Hub, which develops seeds for tropical and controlled growing environments, and AquaPolis, which combines research on Asian seabass breeding, health and nutrition.

Four pillars support the food system

The Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment's food resilience policy sets out Singapore Food Story 2 through four pillars: Diversify Imports, Global Partnerships, Stockpile and Grow Local.

Import diversification gives businesses alternative suppliers when a particular country faces disruption. Government partnerships help keep food trade flowing. Stockpiles provide reserves during interruptions, while local farms offer a source of food that can continue producing within Singapore.

The ministry sets specific local production ambitions for 2035: farms should build the capacity to supply 20% of domestic fibre consumption and 30% of protein consumption. Fibre covers fresh leafy and fruited vegetables, beansprouts and mushrooms; protein covers eggs and seafood.

Those targets give the research programme a practical destination. Better seeds, healthier fish and more efficient cultivation can help local farms contribute a larger buffer, while forecasting and preservation research support food arriving from abroad.

Why forecasting and food storage now receive attention

SFA will support research using data and models to predict climate related risks and possible interruptions to food supplies. A model combines information to estimate what could happen, helping planners prepare before a shortage develops.

Researchers will also work on technologies that extend shelf life and improve stockpile management. Keeping food usable for longer can give suppliers more time to move it, sell it or hold it in reserve. Better management can help ensure stored food is available when needed and replaced before its quality deteriorates.

Fu linked the research push to the region's haze, which she described as evidence that climate pressures are already affecting agriculture. She warned that draining peatlands and burning vegetation can damage soil fertility and the ecosystems that farming depends on.

Peatlands contain waterlogged soil rich in accumulated plant material. Draining them leaves that material more exposed to burning. Repeated fires can harm the land's ability to support future harvests, connecting an immediate haze problem with longer pressures on farmers and food supplies.

The new research field addresses several stages of that problem: anticipating damage to production, preparing alternative supplies and making existing food stocks last longer.

Healthier fish and earlier disease detection

Aquaculture research will focus on better fish breeding, feed, health and farming systems. Scientists will develop higher quality fry and fingerlings, the young fish used to stock farms, suited to local tropical conditions.

Earlier research offers examples of the work being carried forward. An A*STAR vaccine demonstrated around 75% efficacy in experimental settings against Scale Drop Disease Virus, which causes losses in Asian seabass farming in Southeast Asia. AquaPolis brings breeding, nutrition and disease management together to improve seabass production.

The JAPFA partnership adds a route for developing and applying such work in operating businesses. Potential projects include disease monitoring and diagnosis using artificial intelligence, tools to support farm decisions, and traceability systems that record where fish come from and how they move through production.

JAPFA has farming, processing and distribution networks in Indonesia, Vietnam, India, Myanmar and Bangladesh. Its regional operations offer opportunities to develop solutions under the conditions farmers actually face.

Damian Chan, SFA's chief executive, said the partnership would combine Singapore's research capabilities with JAPFA's operational and technological expertise to:

accelerate the development and adoption of practical solutions

The collaboration will focus on aquatic health, disease management and digital aquaculture, with opportunities for research institutions, technology providers and industry partners to participate.

Tropical seeds and crops that use less energy

Agriculture research will develop seed varieties suited to tropical conditions and precision cultivation methods intended to raise yields while reducing energy use. Precision cultivation means adjusting growing conditions more closely to a crop's needs rather than applying the same inputs throughout production.

National University of Singapore researchers have already developed choy sum and kale varieties that achieved yields up to 20% higher than conventional cultivars. Such gains are especially relevant to indoor and vertical farms, where limited growing space and operating costs make output from each area important.

The Seed Innovation Hub builds on earlier research to supply seeds for leafy, fruited and speciality greens grown in tropical and controlled environments. Its focus connects plant breeding with the conditions in which commercial farms need crops to perform.

A planned three party memorandum would bring together Hainan Nanfan Seed Industry Group, the National University of Singapore's Institute for Agrifood Innovation and Venture, and Singapore agritech company Singrow on tropical agriculture innovation.

Singapore will also support a proposed Regional Smallholder Solutions Centre. The centre is intended to help smaller farmers in the region adopt practical innovations to cope with climate pressures and limited resources, extending the cooperation beyond Singapore's own farms.

Future foods must work on cost, taste and nutrition

Future food research will cover engineering biology, bioprocessing, nutrition and sensory science. Engineering biology uses knowledge of living systems to develop useful processes or products. Bioprocessing involves producing materials with cells or other biological systems, while sensory science examines qualities such as taste and texture.

The programme aims to improve production efficiency, affordability and nutritional quality together. A food producer needs a process that can operate at useful scale and a product that people want to eat at a price they can afford.

Earlier work by Nanyang Polytechnic and Umami Bioworks developed cultivated unagi and grouper cell lines, along with a plant based growth serum intended to reduce animal inputs. Cell lines are populations of cells that researchers can maintain and grow for further development.

Another project, involving the Singapore Institute of Technology and A*STAR's Bioprocessing Technology Institute, developed an automated protein profiling platform. It reduced testing time for protein functionality from one to two months to seven days. Faster testing can help developers assess how ingredients behave and decide which formulations to pursue.

Food safety research follows new ingredients and hazards

SFA will strengthen its ability to identify and assess emerging food safety hazards, including through New Approach Methodologies and Next Generation Risk Assessment. The earlier programme included work on methods that evaluate toxicity without animal testing and on assessing whether alternative proteins might cause allergic reactions.

One example is AllerCatPro, a computer screening tool developed through collaboration involving A*STAR institutes, James Cook University and Umami Bioworks. It predicts the potential of proteins to trigger allergies and was reported to achieve close to 100% accuracy for fish allergens in the research described.

The ministry places this research within a wider system of licensing, inspection, sampling, testing and enforcement, covering food from production through to consumption. Importers require licences and permits, while higher risk foods such as meat and eggs face checks on overseas sources.

Food businesses also have responsibilities under the Safety Assurance for Food Establishments (SAFE) framework. Establishments are graded according to their food safety records and implementation of food safety management systems. Research supplies better assessment tools; businesses must apply safe practices in daily operations.

Can research help farms become commercially viable?

Singapore's farms face high land, labour and utility costs. In a parliamentary debate on September 9, Fu said the government's approach was to help farms build capabilities and scale rather than permanently cover higher operating expenses.

SFA had awarded nearly S$60 million to more than 160 projects through the Agri-food Cluster Transformation Fund. Fu also cited increases in annual productivity per hectare of 20% for vegetable farms, 46% for seafood farms and 40% for egg farms since SFA was formed in 2019.

Support includes services as well as equipment and research. SFA's Aquatic Animal Health Services had been activated more than 70 times since its launch in 2023, helping more than 20 farms address animal health problems early and reduce losses.

Fu described food resilience as maintaining reliable access to essential carbohydrates, proteins and fibre, while balancing availability, assurance and affordability. Importing from farther away can provide alternatives but cost more, while local farms can offer supply during disruption at higher production costs.

The S$138 million programme targets that balance through lower production costs, better disease protection, useful reserves and stronger supply planning. Its practical ambition is to turn research into methods that farms, food companies and supply managers can use.

Key Points

• Singapore announced S$138 million for food research over five years under RIE2030.
• Food supply resilience joins aquaculture, agriculture, future foods and food safety as a research priority.
• New work includes risk forecasting, longer shelf life and better stockpile management.
• Singapore imports more than 90% of its food and combines imports, partnerships, reserves and local production.
• Local farms aim to supply 20% of fibre consumption and 30% of protein consumption by 2035.
• SFA and JAPFA will explore practical tropical aquaculture solutions, including disease detection and digital management.