S'pore revises 2030 farming goal amid headwinds facing sector

New targets set for fibre and protein production by 2035 after year-long review

- Shabana Begum Correspondent

Singapore has replaced its original 2030 farming goal with new targets for fibre and protein production by 2035, amid headwinds confronting the local agricultural sector.

At the same time, the Government is also exploring new ways to help local farms boost production and stay viable. It will, for instance, be studying the feasibility of developing a facility that can host multiple farms, and provide common utilities and shared services to lower production costs.

Minister for Sustainability and the Environment Grace Fu announced the revised targets and new initiatives at the opening of the Asia-Pacific Agri-Food Innovation Summit on Nov 4.

This follows a yearlong review of the goal for Singapore to, by 2030, locally produce 30 per cent of the country’s nutritional needs, which include fish, eggs and vegetables.

One of the new targets is for Singapore to, by 2035, produce 20 per cent of the country’s consumption of fibre — a category that comprises leafy and fruited vegetables, bean sprouts and mushrooms, said Ms Fu. These items can be commercially produced in Singapore.

Another goal is for local production of protein - a category that now comprises both eggs and seafood — to meet 30 per cent of total domestic consumption within the same timeline.

In 2024, about 8 per cent of fibre consumed in the Republic was produced domestically. The figure for protein stood at 26 per cent, according to the Singapore Food Agency (SFA).

However, in June, a report on food statistics for 2024 produced by the SFA showed that only 3 per cent of vegetables consumed here were farmed locally.

SFA clarified that the fibre category now includes fewer vegetable types, with rooted veggies and bulbs omitted. Hence, the 2024 percentage was derived to be 8 per cent.

The June report had also shown that 34.4 per cent of eggs and 6.1 per cent of seafood consumed here were farmed locally in 2024.