Food for Thought

How do we narrow Singapore’s food gap?

Going hungry in Singapore can be an unfathomable concept to many, especially with the myriad affordable food options that could go as low as $2.50 for a plate of chicken rice. Last year, the Economist Intelligence Unit ranked Singapore as the most food-secure country in the world on its Global Food Security Index.

Yet, a 2020 United Nations report on The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World revealed that 4.7 per cent of Singapore’s population face moderate to severe food insecurity and lack reliable access to affordable nutrition. On the other end of the spectrum, the amount of food waste generated in Singapore has increased by about 20 per cent in the past 10 years and is expected to climb with our growing population and economic activity, according to the National Environment Agency (NEA). Out of the 744,000 tonnes of food waste generated in 2019, only 18 per cent was recycled.

“While awareness has increased for both food waste and food insecurity, the reality is that the gap has widened with the increased food insecurity situation,” says Nichol Ng, co-founder of The Food Bank Singapore.

“More people have become food insecure as a result of losing their livelihoods during the pandemic. So even with greater awareness, the rate of food donations doesn’t necessarily match the rate of growing need. Based on our pre-covid-19 food insecurity report, which was commissioned to the Lien Centre for Social Innovation in early 2019, one in 10 people is already experiencing food insecurity. That number has currently climbed to one in nine, or worse.”

Other food groups here are also reporting a similar situation. Food from the Heart (FFTH) CEO Sim Bee Hia shares that the charity has been receiving more direct requests for food aid. In February, it was supplying 6,500 food packs a month. By July, the number had risen to nearly 8,600. Free Food for All (FFFA) founder Nizar Mohamed Shariff says that he received over 800 enquiries when he first posted the assistance request form on the charity’s Facebook page. Pre-pandemic, he would see 100 to 120 new applicants a month. Through the support of the Temasek Foundation (the philanthropic arm of Singapore investment firm Temasek Holdings) and