Singapore is on a mission to become more self-sufficient. Because it presently imports 90 percent of its food supply from outside sources, the wealthy city is investing in initiatives to convert vacant pockets of land into spaces for urban farming developments. Not only will this reduce Singapore’s reliance on imported food, it will benefit the environment and possibly the local economy by creating more jobs.
Reuters reports that Edible Garden City, a company which promotes a “grow your own food” lifestyle, has designed and constructed 50+ food gardens in the island city for a plethora of clients. Some of the food gardens are for restaurants and hotels, while others are for schools and residences.
One of Edible Garden City’s projects is an 8,000-square-meter plot that used to be a prison. Now, it’s a luscious urban farm “where the local community can learn and grow together,” states the project website. Reportedly, City Farm can produce up to 100kg of vegetables per day, 10-15 kg of mushrooms and 20 kg of herbs. All in all, that’s enough to feed up to 500 people — per day.
Of course, that’s a tiny amount considering the entire country is home to 5.5 million people. However, as Darren Ho, the head of Citizen Farm initiative said, it’s a proper start. “No system will replace imports, we are here to make us more food resilient,” Ho commented. He also added that it is “up to the community” to decide how self-sufficient and eco-friendly Singapore becomes.
In the future, Edible Garden City may work with the government to convert other pockets of vacant land into food forests which can supply the growing population.
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