The Singapore Food Story calls out the importance of innovation in Singapore’s ambition to attain a sustainable and nutritious food supply from an increasingly unpredictable planet. The drive to grow more of its own food needs locally – the well quoted ‘Singapore 30 by 30’ or 30% of food requirements grown domestically by 2030 – is a clear call to action for Singapore to reduce its vulnerability to external forces for its own food security.
‘Singapore 30 by 30’ is a significant export growth opportunity for Australia’s Food and Agribusinesses that goes beyond final food and beverage products. There is much potential for Australian organisations to collaborate with a country that is investing to solve major challenges in urban food production, food system sustainability and safety of food supply. These challenges are highly relevant to a world needing to feed 10 billion people by the year 2050, with 50% of that population expected to be here in Asia.
The CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, recently re-released its 2017 Food & Agribusiness Roadmap detailing value-added growth opportunities for Australian businesses, including growth opportunities in South-East Asia. The Roadmap was updated to reflect the significant traction – illustrated by investments and formation of new companies – in key trends such as sustainable proteins, food traceability and the shift towards embracing circular economy technologies to reduce the huge amount of food waste.
Consumers are evolving too, demanding convenience for both in- and out-of-home consumption, a broader range of flavours and food-based experiences, customised offerings, more information about how and where their purchase originated, and products that improve mental and physical wellbeing.
V2 Foods and Lumachain are strong examples of two new Australian businesses solving big problems in the global food industry. V2Foods was formed last year with CSIRO scientists to create a tasty plant-based alternative to animal meat that’s better for people and better for the planet.
Lumachain brings transparency to global supply chains, benefiting producers, enterprises and consumers, with a unique approach to track and trace the origin, location and condition of individual items in a supply chain in real time.
CSIRO is also enthusiastic about its new collaboration with Singapore’s A*STAR, supported by the Australia and Singapore governments, to develop “Innovative Foods for Precision Health”.
The new program seeks ideas from Australian and Singaporean researchers with business collaborators to support innovations in foods designed for positive health outcomes, deepen understanding of consumer readiness and acceptance towards such foods, and demonstrate how data science can be used to inform strategies to improve the health and safety outcomes of innovative foods.
If you’re an Australian business interested in bringing food innovation to South-East Asia let us know at asean@csiro.au