Global Webinar on AgriTech, Smart Farming & Horticulture

Title : Beyond high-tech: Finding the right solutions for sustainable vertical farming in Singapore

Singapore faces a pressing challenge in securing its food supply amidst rapid urbanization, climate change, and land scarcity. Historically reliant on food imports—constituting 90% of its consumption—the nation has aggressively pursued urban agriculture and vertical farming to bolster local food production. However, despite government incentives, high-tech farming faces persistent challenges, including high operational costs, limited scalability, and weak consumer demand. While local vegetable production fluctuated between 4.8% and 10% from 2000 to 2020, the economic contribution of local vegetable production remains minimal. With only 1% of land allocated for agriculture, farms struggle with high rental costs. Energy expenses are another major hurdle, as indoor vertical farms rely heavily on artificial lighting and climate control, driving up electricity costs. Additionally, the sector faces labour shortages, requiring specialized expertise that further inflates operational expenses. Despite substantial government support, funding remains a challenge. With private investment in agritech falling, and along with regulatory barriers business viability has slowed. Moreover, weak consumer demand for local produce exacerbates the struggle, with imports often undercutting local prices. An overreliance on technology without addressing business sustainability has led to mixed outcomes. Vegetable farms struggling under the weight of high-tech investments, fail to yield returns. The emphasis on cutting-edge farming fail to balance with practical, cost-effective strategies. To navigate these challenges, Singapore’s agritech sector must focus on scalable solutions and energy-efficient innovations. The Northern Agri-Tech and Food Corridor exemplifies efforts to create an integrated ecosystem supporting vertical farms, aquaculture, and livestock operations. However, long-term success requires more than just infrastructure development and technological advancements—it demands a holistic strategy that considers economic viability and consumer engagement. As Singapore pursues its ambitious 30x30 goal, will stronger public-private sectors collaboration and reliance on high-tech solutions, help it to overcome barriers and achieve sustainable vertical farming? The journey toward food resilience is complex, but with the right balance of innovation and practicality such as searching for the right technology, perhaps only then Singapore could build a sustainable vertical farming industry. 

 Title: Utilizing extension services to broaden the impact of research in communities

Title : The use of spectral measurements in experiments and agricultural production

Title : Soil physical property assessment of large-scale paddy fields using autonomous robots

Extending postharvest quality and maintaining the nutritional value of cucumber fruit requires ‎specific storage conditions to postpone senescence and enhance marketability. The postharvest ‎lighting environment is a main factor that influences quality preservation for harvested ‎biomass. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of different light emitting ‎diodes (LED) spectra (green, red, blue, and white LED) alone or in combination with 1-‎Methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) on postharvest quality and bioactive compounds of cucumber fruit ‎during cold storage for 16 days at 5°C, the control fruit were left in the dark. For combined treatment, the fruits were exposed to 1-MCP ‎atmosphere for 24 hours under cold storage conditions, and then fruits were subjected to different ‎LED light treatments. Fruit color, total chlorophyll, ‎phenolic content, flavonoid, and antioxidant capacity, fruit decay and storage life were assessed. ‎Green LED light had a positive impact in maintaining cucumber fruits' physicochemical ‎and bioactive qualities during storage as it significantly improved fruit color, and antioxidant activity (DPPH ‎assay), and reduced decay as compared to the control, and other LED treatments. When compared to LED light treatment alone, the combined treatment with 1-MCP ‎significantly maintained the chlorophyll and carotene content in cucumber fruits up to 8 days. ‎Among all combined treatments, the combination of 1-MCP+green LED and 1-MCP + ‎blue LED demonstrated the highest chlorophyll a and b contents. However, the blue LED was linked to the faster fruit decay. The findings of this research ‎underscore the variability of the LED lights impact alone or in conjunction with 1-MCP on the ‎cucumber storability and nutritional quality, providing insight for postharvest practices. In the ‎future, further studies are required, such as using light intensities, other cucumber varieties.‎