What It Takes To Keep 5 Million Fed: Inside Singapore's Race To Food Security | Feeding A City

In Singapore, we eat what
we want, when we want,

and we want it now.

But as the world stands at the
brink of a possible food crisis,

this culinary paradise
must take greater measures

to fortify its food supply.

What does it take to keep
a city of 5.6 million fed?

We cannot take food for
granted in Singapore.

They were so dependent
on other people.

The more we understand
how food is produced,

the more we appreciate food.

Singaporeans should
go local, because they

will know where the
food comes from,

and supporting a
local producer also

means that you are
supporting sustainably.

The world is increasingly
more resource constrained.

We need to produce
more with less,

and I think technology will
be an enabler in this process.

When we talk about
food security,

we're talking about a situation,
where all people, at all times,

can have access--

physical access,
economic access to food

that is safe and nutritious.

It's no longer calories.

And that's why vegetables
become so important.

Hence, also the focus on
vegetables in Singapore.

Vegetables really supply you
the minerals and vitamins.

That's what security is.

If we do it in a very
conventional way,

the traditional
farming, it actually

means that we have to devote
a huge multiple of land.

Many times of land in
Singapore for farming,

which we cannot afford.

We have to look at
competing needs for lands.

And therefore, we have to
make some serious choices

between development, between
our schools, between factories,

and HDB flats and farms.

When we started out, we
wanted to look at rooftops,

because currently, only
1% of the area, the land

here is actually segmented
for traditional farming.

So if we really wanted to
contribute to, I would say,

food production in a
very meaningful way,

we need to look at
alternative areas for farming.

Carpark rooftops, they
are usually underutilized.

The sun is very hot.

So rarely, would people want to
actually park on the rooftop?

My parents, they opened up
a farm in Batu Pahat area.

And I grew up, actually,
going to, the farm over there,

and then also doing
door-to-door deliveries,

hosting farm tours at
the traditional farm.

So that exposure
to, I would say,

farming, in general, actually,
created a level of interest

for me.

And I knew that all
along, I always wanted

to go back to, I would
say, urban farming.

Aqua organic system
growing technology

was actually invented by my
colleague's in house, Mr. Théo,

so he's someone who has very
rich agriculture experience.

We really tested out with a lot
of different growing mediums,

different growing
methodologies to create

this aqua organic system
that's unique to our company,

unique to, I would
say, Singapore.

We can even call it like
an Singapore innovation.

Our aqua organic system here is
actually a zero-waste farming

system.

So what do I mean by that
is that every component

in our farming
system is actually

reusable and recyclable.

So even for our growing
medium, here, we are actually

using fire clay pebble.

And this clay pebbles here
is, actually, every time

we harvest it, we actually
reuse it, we wash it,

and then we put it
back in the system.

So with this clay
pebble, we also

have thin film of
water that flows

below this layer of pebbles.

And every drop of water is
actually in constant motion.

So you can imagine,
every molecule of water

actually travels through about
5 kilometers of distance.

And then they are
in constant motion.

So that actually helps to
prevent mosquito from breeding.

At the same time, the
angle of the farming system

also helps to actually
allow more efficient flow

of the water.

So this reuses overall like the
electricity consumption we have,

when we are trying to
drive that water flow.

We're letting the players
decide and we are funding them,

quite broadly, based on some
broad indicators, like yield

on the land and so on.

And it's really for
us and the industry

to prove that certain
technologies will work or will

not work.

When we were starting
out to grow our produce,

we did experience
a lot of challenges

from such, like
climatic conditions,

because they were irregular.

And as such, I will produce.

They weren't growing in a way
that we expected them to grow.

So over time, we actually
did a lot of research

in terms of plant
science, plant health,

the growing medium
that we use, even

the solution that we are using
right now, to really refine

our growing technology.

OK, so now, I'm harvesting
the [NON-ENGLISH].

And for us, actually, what
we are trying to do here

is that we're also hoping
to share with consumers

that actually plants,
vegetables, some of them

may actually come in
varying shades of colors

of greens and yellows,
and they are all still

safe for consumption.

When you look at the local
produce that's available,

in general, we might
cause slightly higher

compared to produce
that are imported

from overseas, for
instance, due to the fact

that we don't really have
as much economies of scale

that we can tap on.

So the interesting thing about
how we go about our harvesting

is that for our
[NON-ENGLISH] order,

we actually harvest them and
deliver them with the roots.

And then we do a quick dip.

And then we'll pack
them like that as well.

So don't you think it looks
like a bouquet of vegetables?

Yeah.

We do hope that more and
more locals can actually

start to, I would
say, focus to find out

a bit more about the kind
of variety of local produce

that's available in Singapore.

Actually, I would dare to
say that our local produce is

actually of comparable
quality or even better quality

compared to imports
coming into Singapore.

If we are able to control the
quantity of cheaply imported

vegetables, maybe
the local farms

here will have an opportunity
to thrive as well.

So my question really is,
if locally grown greens are

actually more
expensive, why don't we

actually help our local
farms to bring down

their costs by increasing
the demand for locally

produced products?

Farming and being a farmer
is one of my identities.

I don't see it as a label
that completely describes me.

I'm also raising awareness
about food production,

conducting workshops.

I'm also doing the business
development aspect.

We know that for
these farms, depending

on what technology you use,
can be very energy intensive.

But we also know there's a lot
of research going on right now

to tap solar energy
for rooftop farms.

So to me, it's still
a question mark.

But technically,
technologically, can you

grow vegetables on rooftops?

Yes, definitely.

And we often get asked why kale?

We didn't want to focus
on growing products that

can grow locally.

We don't believe that is what
indoor farms should be about.

It's really about disrupting
the food value system.

We want to focus on the
products that are imported.

The reason for that is
that, today, 70% of produce

is actually wasted, getting
it to the end consumer.

We grow impossible products
in impossible places

that are not only
100% clean, they

are completely
free of pesticides.

They're traceable, and they're
very sustainable as well.

So the typical life cycle of
a plant in traditional farming

is they put the seed in soil.

It grows up, and then
it gets harvested.

For us, we need to be
super efficient with all

of our resources, everything
from the rent, the space

that we have, all the way
through to electricity.

So we break the lifecycle
up into many, many phases,

so we can be as
optimum as we can

with the inputs at
different parts of growth.

Jocelyn works very
closely with the R&D team.

In fact, Jocelyn was one
of our first employees

and now runs up the
whole nursery section.

Half the products we're growing
today is because of Jocelyn.

All this root is they push up.

They push it up?

Yeah.

I need to push down.

Absolutely.

Absolutely.

Because once they push up all
this, the plant, the moisture,

they won't get so much,
because the root is already

outside here.

Yeah.

So I'm pushing in
then to get them

the moisture inside the form.

That's right.

So they can grow faster.

Yeah, absolutely.

And then we have the
100% germination success.

Yeah.

And then we set the
plan up for good growth

in the main grow area.

Yes.

What is required is the
ability to grow more with less.

As countries navigate a
volatile, uncertain, complex,

and ambiguous
environment, I believe

the most important word to
them now is consistency.

And with our
program, where we are

able to consistently
control our output,

our production has no surprises.

This is our sustainer
sitting machine.

What it does is
actually auto seeding.

So comparing a
manual seeding that's

being done by an operator,
they would do it in one hour.

But for this machine,
it would actually

do it in 20 minutes or less.

So it helps on our
yield and productivity.

And at the same time, it helps
on getting our germination

and seed placement
in a better position.

So it actually
improves our process.

In August 2012, when I was
traveling home from work,

and the illustrations that I was
looking at on vertical farming

gave me this idea about how this
could actually be done in Asia.

I didn't just jump
into vertical farming.

I took it for a
very, very long test

drive, as much as 18 months,
trying to figure out,

can this actually work?

What do I need to create
to make it happen?

I don't feel like
I pursued this.

I feel like it
chose me in a way,

but it kept me
getting up every day,

trying to figure a way
that we can do this.

The perception of
farming in Singapore

is completely changing.

I mean, we're wearing clean
suits, and there is zero soil.

In fact, we're
farming in 22 degrees.

I think we're completely
changing the landscape

of farming, which is necessary.

Vegetables, like kale and
lettuce, the people who buy them

are willing to
pay a premium, OK?

But even kale itself, it's
difficult to compete with kale

imported from elsewhere.

We wanted to educate
our community

on the importance of
high nutrition, quality

over quantity.

Now, when I first started
serving kale to Singaporeans,

a lot of them didn't actually
enjoy the flavor, whatsoever.

If we took the feedback
from the customers,

and we found a way to
actually adapt the taste,

the characteristics
of the product

by controlling the environment.

So today, our kale is crispy.

It's actually sweet, almost.

The most intriguing question is,
under non-normal circumstances,

what kind of food
stuffs would people

be willing to buy
and at what price?

And ask yourself
the same question.

If there's a crisis, no fresh
vegetables from Malaysia,

would you be willing
to buy hydroponics,

even at a higher price?

I think, to me, the answer
is, most likely, yes.

Fish is important to
grow in Singapore,

because we have
sea spaces, which

tend to have fewer competing
needs compared to land.

There's also the problem of
declining wild catch globally,

and that's why we think
it is important to produce

sufficient Singapore.

Barramundi is the only ocean
bass farm in Singapore.

Behind ocean bass
farming, there are

a lot of sophisticated
technology and investments

involved.

I think most critically
is the know-how.

Barramundi Asia is founded
in 2007 by two Dutchmen.

They brought with
them the experience

of how to farm salmon in
that deep sea environment.

They came down to Asia,
and Singapore specifically,

to look for the
next white salmon,

and they landed on Barramundi
and landed in Singapore.

Barramundi has a unique
taste and flavor.

It is an oilier, fattier fish.

It has very good texture
to pan fry and grill.

So this way, we grow
our fingerlings.

They are in very
big circular tanks.

So this is also
designed specifically

so that the water flow rate
would be good for the fish

to stay active.

Barramundi takes
two years to grow.

We grow the baby
fish, all the way

from what we call fry, all
the way to adult size of 4 kg.

And we control and monitor
the entire supply chain

with great care.

Yeah.

All, looking at me right now.

That actually shows
that they're hungry,

and we're actually,
in a way, train

them to eat at certain timings.

We all try to scatter
the feed across the tank

so that they don't cluster.

They will spread
out a little bit.

And actually, it's through these
methods of feeding and observing

the fish that we can
tell whether the fish,

they're healthy or not.

A lot of planning
goes into making sure

that we have a constant
supply for our customers.

I think the worst
thing to happen

is to have a disrupted supply.

Ocean bass farming requires
a lot of expertise,

from veterinarians,
marine biologists.

We have engineers as well to
make sure that we can set up

all the systems.

The lack of talent and expertise
is challenging for farm like us,

especially when we're
doing ocean bass systems.

A large part of the
agricultural workforce

is older and declining,
and it has been a challenge

to try to attract a new
generation of young people

who want to join the
agricultural sector because

of its traditionally
tough image.

The guys now are actually
trying to join a net

so that the fish are then
gathered to the point

at the corner of the cage,
so that the crane can just

then drop in a bucket to lift
the fish out of the water,

and then immediately load
them into an ice bucket.

The harvesting process actually
requires a lot of logistics.

So as the nets are being
sent, what will happen

is that the fish,
they will constantly

fighting against the
nets being drawn in.

They are getting a
little bit tired.

And once they
settle down, and we

don't see much
movement, that's where

we drop our harvest
bucket in, and then

we start to scoop them out.

And each time, when we do
that, actually, the weight

is being measured.

So we know exactly
how much comes out.

And on average, we harvest
about 5 to 7 tons each time.

When you look at
the fish, if you

look at the color of the
gills, the eyes, and also

the natural shine and slime
that he has on his body,

this tells you that
it's a healthy fish.

It is almost an arm's length.

They are very active fish.

They swim very fast, and
there's a lot of activity.

Our guys do dive inside
to get to experience them

very close up.

And they actually are not shy.

They will come out close to you.

They will brush past you.

They don't mind
that interaction.

That's right.

Not all fish are farmed equally.

So when you see a fish
in a small market,

it could be caught
unsustainably in the wild.

When it comes to
farming, there are

many ways you can farm a fish.

Aquaculture and
agricultural sectors

represents one of the last
frontiers, which many people

have talked about, and we think
that this will be the right time

to look at using the positive
forces of technology,

appropriately, to basically
reap the benefits.

Additionally, I think when
people think about agriculture

and aquaculture sectors, people
think of traditional farmers,

very low paying jobs, toiling
in open field farms, and so on.

But today, I think we are
seeing very different formats

out there.

Farming ornamental
fish is actually not

so far from farming marine fish.

And the way that they build
the tanks in ornamental fish

also in stack process.

Here, we are able to develop
a single-level tier, what's

stopping us from trying to stack
them in vertically upwards.

We are a land-based
aquaculture facility,

and it's an enclosed
environment.

One of the key points of a
land-based vertical farming,

what we have here,
is, actually, we

are very kept in a
clean environment,

not exposed to any
form of contamination.

The labor footprint
is actually very low.

What you're looking at
here is two great big tanks

of coral trout.

In total, around
here, I think we're

looking at more than 5 tons of
coral trout that we have here.

And over at level
2, you'll be seeing

some of our hybrid long hu.

I want you all to have
a look at this place,

where we actually
are housing some

of the fries of the long hu.

Then there are
small tanks that's

housing all these
different hybrid grouper.

We have four main species
right now that we're farming.

We have the hybrid grouper, the
coral trout, the white shrimp,

and the blue shrimps.

Our current production numbers
are actually at about 200 tons

to about 220 tons per year.

Money is a problem.

I think the biggest
challenge, of course,

is funds is one challenge.

I think the other challenge
is also the knowledge.

Seafood or fish
aquaculture farming

is actually a very
challenging business

to understand and to
grow in that scale,

in terms of
understanding, first,

the technology, the breeding,
the condition, the environment,

and how to make sure
that this fish grows

in good consistent condition.

Welcome to the Apollo
command center.

This is where we consolidate
most of our farming data

and remotely accessing all the
different settings of the farm.

Whether it is the temperature,
the salinity, the oxygen,

the pH, they all
can be monitored

from this remote station.

Whenever there is something like
an alert that appears right,

we will be able to trigger
a manpower on site.

The high-tech farming sector
is actually a really nascent

sector, and it resulted from
the confluence of a few fields--

traditional agriculture, as well
as engineering, biotechnology,

robotics, artificial
intelligence.

Farming today has much more
possibilities than people

have imagined in the past.

I think the golden
question is always,

if Apollo is using technology,
wouldn't your production

be more expensive
and not competitive

than the other
traditional farming?

So the answer, actually,
is because we are not

producing six times more in
terms of absolute production

versus that cost.

Based on proportion, we are
actually more competitive.

To whether or not Singaporeans
support local produce,

I think a lot of it
comes down to price.

Price is always
still the concern

that Singaporeans
are looking at.

I mean, to them, they
actually not so worried about

produce where or imported,
because it hasn't really

hit that point yet.

But COVID does bring
up that awareness.

But at the end of the
day, Singaporeans,

they still look at price.

The industry players themselves
are fully aware they cannot be

producing or premium products,
because that will subject

themselves to a risk, so they're
doing a portfolio approach--

producing some for
the mass market,

and producing some for the
premium market so that they can

come up with a
profitable formula.

It has been always part
of us, in Asian cuisine.

We use it as a complement
to our noodles.

We put eggs in everything,
like mi goreng, prata, rojak.

So in our food, that's eggs.

We use eggs on all our set menu.

As you know, nasi lemak,
one of the basic ingredients

is fried eggs.

[NON-ENGLISH SPEECH]

Per month will be 9,000 egss.

2 to 300 eggs a day.

4,005 eggs in total per month.

I'm pretty shocked,
but yeah, here we are.

Today, we just welcome another
batch of 23,000 day-old chicks

from SFA accredited
breeder farms.

So every month, we will
welcome one batch of chickens

into our farm.

I'm checking the chick's
condition, the feathers,

the legs, and their reaction.

It's quite smooth
and considered good.

But because we do the
vaccine for these chicks,

so it's green color.

After I take the chicks, I will
put the chicks into the cage.

Our government set a
big goal to produce

30% of our nutritional
needs by 2030.

It's challenging, but we must
act now and not later on,

when we need more food.

Eggs are one of the most
nutritious foods on Earth,

and definitely one of the most
affordable forms of protein

available.

Eggs are also very versatile,
and it can be used widely

in many cuisines, so
it makes sense for us

to include eggs in part
of our 30 by 30 vision.

Eggs are the few main food types
staples to Singaporeans, where

most of us consume.

It's also about strategically
targeting at food types

where we think in Singapore,
we have a good chance

of producing it in scale.

In the new farm, we are
hiring more high technology.

For example, in our old farm,
we have about 52 houses.

And moving into our new farm,
we only have about 26 houses.

OK, so this is our
cage-free layer system.

There are about 25,000
birds inside this house.

Let me show you how they live.

Please watch your way
when you are going.

So as you can see, the birds
have the room to move around

vertically and horizontally.

So over here, we have
automated feeding system

and also drinking system.

The egg collections and
also the manual bell system

is automated as well.

So we do not need
a lot of manpower

inside this house to manage it.

You may be wondering what's
behind the orange curtain.

That's actually where the
chickens lay their eggs.

Let me show you.

Birds like very
dark environment,

where they feel very secure so
that they can lay their eggs

in a very peace of mind.

So after they lay the eggs,
then they will come out.

Then, the next birds will go in.

We are expecting about 22,000
eggs to be laid every day.

Normally, the hens will start
laying between 8:00 AM up

to about 2:00 PM.

So this is the period
where they lay.

So we have to
arrange our workers

to be ready to pick the
eggs, once the eggs are laid.

OK, as you may realize,
why are the hands are

keep on pecking on my
yellow-colored boots.

It's because the
color of my boots

looks the same as the
color of the feed,

so they keep on pecking on it.

They thought it's a food.

It's fully automated.

In this control panel,
we are able to see

the temperature, the
humidity, the air

ventilation of the house.

Other than that, we are also
able to see the feed consumption

on that day and also the
water consumption at that day.

Our workers just need to
go to the control panel

to do some
adjustment, and we are

able to manipulate the
environment of the house.

Automation is important.

Our egg farms are probably the
most technologically advanced.

Most people don't realize this,
but in the '70s, Singapore's

poultry farming was considered
amongst the most advanced

in the world.

With the support from
Agriculture Productivity Fund,

we invested in this
state-of-the-art egg grading,

sorting, and packaging machines.

These machines have the capacity
to grade up to 190,000 eggs per

hour.

This is more than double
of our old farm's capacity.

We have this egg inspection.

Over this egg inspection, any
dirty eggs and leaking eggs

will be detected over here.

Then, it will go
through the orientator.

What this orientator will do is,
it will orientate all the egg so

that all the egg will be
facing in one direction

to maximize the freshness.

Then we have this
crack detector,

where as small as
a hairline crack

will be detected over here
before it moves to the next QC

check.

Over here, we will have
the UV disinfection.

So all the UV rays will
kill all the microorganisms

on the surface of the shell.

Then, it will be weighted and
graded according to their size

and sent to the
respective lanes.

Normally, for the
supermarkets item,

we will pack it in a pack of 10.

So for those, we use
the plastic trays.

And for the one in the 30s,
which we sell it to the F&B

market, we sell it
to the wholesaler,

we will normally use the
egg trays in the paper form.

Blank constraints
and manpower shortage

are definitely two of the
most common challenges

that every farmer
face in Singapore.

But other than that, we
also face the challenges

of higher production costs, as
compared to the imported eggs.

Higher production
costs also means

that we have to sell our
eggs at a higher price,

as compared to some
of the imported eggs.

This is something that not
all the consumers understand

and able to accept.

Egss is a simple commodity
that all of us can recognize.

In Singapore, we've
got three local farms.

But do you know that we do
not control the eggs that

are imported as well?

Because SFA wanted
to ensure that we

have got the luxury of choice,
different countries, and all

that.

But recently, because there's
so much of imported eggs,

there's been the
stories in the press

that you are throwing away eggs,
because eggs has short shelf

life.

So we have asked some
of the local farms

before, hey, if we do not import
eggs, do we have enough eggs?

Are we able to give
you enough mileage

and say, can our chickens
actually produce enough eggs?

And the answer is yes.

Our new farm has the
capacity to produce up

to 1 million eggs per day.

During the pandemic,
it's like a wake up

call for all
Singaporeans to realize

the importance of our
national food security,

because we can't just
increase our production

within a day or years.

It's a very long-term
goal for Singapore.

It is not impossible
at all to grow fruits

commercially in Singapore.

Technically speaking, we
have the right climate.

We've got the right even soil
quality for it and space.

We do have a lot of
spacem, despite what

other people may say.

But whether it is
economically desirable,

that's, of course,
another question.

So why aren't we growing
more fruit trees?

Short answer,
planting priorities.

When there are more fruit trees,
you need people to harvest them.

You need people to
take care of them.

You need people to,
maybe, maintain them

more than ornamental trees.

And we don't want to do that.

Singapore would always want
to eat the temperate fruits

just because we are a
very cosmopolitan city.

We will see these
foods on television.

We will read about them.

We will travel.

We will like them,
and therefore, we

would crave for them
all times of the year.

Nothing wrong with that,
but we should then also

put some effort and emphasis on
learning about indigenous fruits

and vegetables.

The ones here are much younger
because we planted them

when we came to the
land, just 20 years ago.

So they're quite good,
though, because jackfruit,

they get productive
pretty quickly.

Yeah.

They start to fruit, as
young as three years old.

We would love to
be able to source

some jackfruit
here in Singapore.

So do you have
plans to grow more?

I think if our
lease is renewed, we

would grow a lot more of
everything, jackfruit included.

Now, you start to see a lot
of more mainstream restaurants

using it as a meat substitute.

So Karana is a whole
plant-based meat brand.

Dan, my co-founder, was the
first to really latch on

to jackfruit.

He actually had a dish, and
he thought he was eating pork.

And it turned out,
it was jackfruit.

And that's where we
really realized that it

had this amazing potential.

We're trying to show the
versatility of the fruit

and how it can be used as
an amazing meat substitute.

Yeah.

But I think the
one difficulty is

that it's really hard to use
from a chef's perspective

because it's pretty laborious.

But the great thing about
it is a sustainable crop,

and it's easy to grow.

I mean, how do you guys find it?

Oh, we have dozens of
jackfruit trees here.

They fruit year round.

They give us a lot of fruit.

The volume is great.

The yield is great because
they're very heavy.

Each fruit gives us a
lot of meat, so to speak.

It's actually the highest
yielding tree fruit

in the world.

We're thinking
alternative proteins

very seriously because it
is possible to produce them

using less land compared to
traditional forms of cattle

farming.

And it's also more resource
efficient and environmentally

sustainable.

OK, so once our knives
and our hands are oiled,

we're just going to
go right into it,

and we're going to remove
the skin of the jackfruit.

This is the part that
needs a lot of strength.

This is why I don't do
it too much, because I

know how difficult it is.

Getting a lot of resistance,
and the knife's kind of stuck,

so probably have to actually
work it a little bit.

It's not the easiest, and I
think that's why a lot of chefs

shy away from using
it, even though it's

an amazing and
versatile ingredient.

And what makes it
really interesting

for us is these fibers.

Because when we're using
it as a meat replacement,

these fibers are
very naturally meaty.

We see the population
in Asia is growing,

and the population
worldwide is growing.

And with that comes a huge,
insatiable demand for meat.

In fact, it's projected
to grow by 78% to 2050.

There are a number of
reasons to eat less meat,

but I think the primary reason
is because of climate change.

We are putting an enormous
stress and pressure

on our planet through our
animal agriculture system.

And if you layer on top of
that, things like swine flu

and coronavirus that are putting
increasing pressure on food

supply chains, it's clear
that we need to do something

a little bit different.

Worldwide, we know that there is
about at least 30,000 different

species of edible plants, out
of which though we're merely

consuming 150 different
ones on a regular basis.

We've worked very,
very intensely

on finding the best way
to actually translating

the raw jackfruit into
this meat-like product.

Here, we are actually using
traditional cooking techniques,

but of course, at a
slightly different scale.

And through this
process, we are managing

to bring out this meat-like
fibrousness texture in the best

way.

In terms of texture,
what we really have seen

is that jackfruit lends
itself to that perfectly

because of just the internal
structure of jackfruit itself,

where the fibers are packed
in a very dense way that

resembles muscle fiber.

From an optical
point of view, it's

more like a cooked meat,
where the proteins are already

denatured, so it does
not provide the binding,

but of the individual
pieces, it really gives you

that meat-like experience.

Some of the challenges of
introducing meat substitutes

into Asia is, firstly,
there's consumer acceptance.

And a lot of
consumers here, they

have a misconception
about nutritional values

of the products.

So now that the product is
available for chefs like me,

what I do is then
I further get into

different avatars
or different dishes

so that it becomes like a
really, really tasty treat

to eat as well.

So an example is a bulgogi
that I've done here.

So we need to strike
a middle ground,

see as to which
flavor profile will

suit like the 80 percentile.

When you're doing something
which is very meat-like,

you're also thinking of like
animal fat, mouthfeel, apart

from just the flavor
and the perspective.

But yeah, the latest
tweaks that we

did on the process for the
color of the product, that

was, of course,
with the benchmark,

to have it look as much
like pork as possible.

Yeah.

Agrifood tech startups are
a natural agent and also

a natural disruptor
in the whole process,

because they are able to take
on more risks and experiment

in technologies in ways which
traditional food companies are

less able to.

They are, therefore,
better placed

to commercialize
new food products,

and therefore,
bring new options.

I think the market
for meat substitutes

is definitely
emerging here in Asia.

It is definitely still
nascent, but you're

seeing a lot more innovations
and brands coming to market

and a lot more interest.

Has our production
capacity ramps up?

Over time,
Singaporeans will have

to adjust to a more sustainable
way of producing things, which

may be at a slightly
higher cost,

but it actually forms a
certain security blanket

as we insure ourselves
against future pandemics

and also supply
chain disruptions.