S'pore-made EV, bespoke scents among items donated to heritage causes

Patrons who gave $12.5m in cash, artefact and in-kind donations in 2024 honoured

- Ng Keng Gene Correspondent

They were at the National Museum of Singapore in Stamford Road, but their noses might have transported them somewhere else.

Visitors to the National Museum of Singapore’s Amazonia photography exhibition, which ran from November 2024 to March 2025, would have caught whiffs of scents inspired by the flowers and plants found at MacRitchie Reservoir and Singapore Botanic Gardens.

The olfactory experience came courtesy of fragrance and flavour firm Givaudan Singapore, which designed and manufactured the bespoke scents for the exhibition — free of charge.

For its donation, the firm was on Nov 19 recognised at the National Heritage Board’s (NHB) annual Patron of Heritage Awards, alongside 63 other organisations and individuals.

In total, the patrons contributed about $12.51 million to Singapore’s heritage sector in 2024.

About $5.96 million comprised cash contributions, while the other roughly $6.55 million included artefact and in-kind donations.

Mr Ben Webb, regional head of fragrances for Asia-Pacific in Givaudan’s fragrance and beauty division, said that although the 250-year-old company is headquartered in Switzerland, it has an interest in supporting the culture and heritage of each country it has operations in.