Urban Farming in Singapore
First published in FuturArc. 2020 (1Q): 24-31.
Modern agrotech-based vegetable farm
Urban farming is the cultivation of plants and fish, and the raising of livestock within and around cities. It commands a significant level of commerce, which makes it much more than just homesteading or subsistence farming. Urban farming is embedded into various parts of an urban ecosystem with which it is constantly interacting. It consumes scarce urban resources like water and energy; it engages urban residents as labourers and consumers; it becomes part of urban networks of storage and distribution; it impacts urban ecology and most significantly, it competes for land with several other components of urban infrastructure[1].
Concept image of Sunqiao Urban Agricultural District
WHY IS URBAN FARMING IMPORTANT TO CITIES TODAY?
The increasing attention that urban farming has been gaining in cities stems from the extreme stress that they are experiencing to provide safe and adequate amount of food to all strata of society. By this year, the developing countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America will be home to 75 per cent of all urban dwellers[1]. The challenge to provide equitable access to food is not just limited to these developing countries. For example, 80 per cent of the population in California are urban residents. The cities in the San Francisco Bay Area alone import 2.5 to 3 million tonnes of food daily over an average distance of 500 to 1,000 miles. But this food fails to reach one out of every eight people in the region who live under the poverty line. These are mostly elderly citizens, children and minorities[2]. Singapore, on the other hand, imports 90 per cent of its requirements from 180 countries across the globe[3]. However, importing food at such scales consumes enormous amount of energy, generates significant greenhouse gas emissions, and makes cities such as Singapore vulnerable to a multitude of local and global disruptions.
Urban farming has the potential to improve food security in cities by cultivating the basic nutritional needs within the city itself and relieving the pressure to continuously import. Modern agrotech-based urban farms champion the ability to be immensely productive and cultivate food with utmost attention to safety in clean, bio-secured environments without the use of any harmful chemicals. This also addresses the underlying demand amongst people for greater transparency about where their food is coming from and how is it grown, treated and processed, etc. It is a concern that gains more traction with every recurring episode of swine flu, avian flu, oil spills and other similar events. Urban farming can go a long way in addressing these concerns.
HOW CAN URBAN FARMING IMPACT THE ECOSYSTEM?
Bringing farming closer to urban centres can also relive the pressure of production on traditional industrial agriculture. These industrial-scale farms spread themselves across swathes of fertile land and focus solely on production and profit. There is scant consideration for their impact on nature and the ecosystem. They are the second largest emitter of greenhouse gases after the energy sector and the largest consumer of water[4]. Industrial agriculture is also monocultural in practice, where farmers focus on just one or two crops over an entire area. It consumes tonnes of fertilisers, which are rich in nitrogen, potassium and phosphorous, together with pesticides. All of these make it easier to manage and are highly profitable in the short term, but they lead to severe depletion of nutrients and organic matter in the soil in due course. Furthermore, industrial agriculture depletes groundwater content. Soon, the once productive ground is rendered barren and unfit for agriculture altogether.
A satellite image of the Amazon basin shows the extent of deforestation caused by expanding agricultural fields
The state of Punjab in India was historically considered amongst the most fertile areas on Earth. But in the 1970s, India introduced the Green Revolution as a solution to its food shortage crisis. This government- led programme encouraged farmers to adopt many of these detrimental methods to boost crop yields. Their effects are still being felt today. The use of pesticides and chemical fertilisers has rendered the soil alkaline in large parts of the state and over-irrigation has caused 79 per cent of the groundwater in Punjab to be considered over-exploited and critical[5]. Similar situations in different parts of the world have forced farmers to encroach into areas of undisturbed natural ecosystems, causing depletion of forest cover and adversely affecting species of wild animals, birds and insects. It was reported in 2012 that agriculture has directly caused about 80 per cent of the tropical deforestation in the world6. In India, reports have suggested that encroaching crop cover into natural habitats has led over 1,500 plant species, 79 mammal species, 44 bird species and many other species of reptiles, amphibians and insects to be listed in the endangered list7. Farmers would also often set fire to cultivated fields to clear stubble and weeds before sowing a new crop. While this expedites their work with minimal cost, it also exacerbates the loss of fertility and produces enormous amounts of air pollutants.
Urban farming, on the contrary, when managed correctly, has the potential to positively impact the urban ecology. A study published in the journal Earth’s Future estimated that fully realised urban farming could provide as much as 15 billion kilowatt hours of annual energy savings worldwide; sequester up to 170,000 tonnes of nitrogen; and prevent about 57 billion cubic metres of storm water run-off, which itself is a major source of pollution to rivers and streams in urban areas. Their study assumes the probable proliferation of various models of vertical farms, as well as farming on suitable roofs and vacant urban spaces, in addition to existing urban greenery[8] (which, in effect, can also be transformed to some extent to be productive greenery).
BUT CAN URBAN FARMING PRODUCE ENOUGH FOOD?
In 2017, the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reported that 800 million people around the globe were already growing their own fruits or vegetables[9] and urban farming accounted for up to one-fifth of the world’s food demand[10]. The following data on certain cities illustrates the extent to which urban farming can be productive1:
In Hanoi (Vietnam), 80 per cent of fresh vegetables; 50 per cent of pork, poultry and freshwater fish; and 40 per cent of eggs originate from urban and peri-urban areas;
In Shanghai (China), the production numbers are 60 per cent of the city’s vegetables, 100 per cent of the milk, 90 per cent of the eggs, and 50 per cent of the pork and poultry required;
Dakar (Senegal) produces 60 per cent of the national vegetable consumption whilst urban poultry production amounts to 65 per cent of the national demand; 60 per cent of the milk consumed in Dakar is produced in/around the city;
In Accra (Ghana), 90 per cent of the city’s fresh vegetable consumption is from production within the city;
In Havana (Cuba), over 26,000 popular gardens cover 2,438.7 hectares and produce 25,000 tonnes of food each year; a total of 299 square kilometres of urban agriculture produced 113,525 tonnes each year.
Notwithstanding all these staggering numbers, the biggest challenge to its implementation and expansion remains the availability of sufficient space within the dense urban areas. A recent survey reported that 51 countries lack enough area in their cities to even grow sufficient vegetables to meet a recommended nutritional requirement[2]. Singapore itself has seen the reduction in agricultural land use from 21 per cent in the 1960s to less than 1 per cent in 2016[11] as it underwent transformation into a first-world city. In this period, it went from a position where it produced 60 per cent of its vegetables, 80 per cent of its poultry and 100 per cent of eggs and pork to the present-day status where it imports almost 90 per cent of all its demand[12]. It is further estimated that if things continue as it is today, there will be a global shortage of nearly 600 million hectares of agricultural land corresponding to a 56 per cent shortage in food supply by 2050[13].
While several cities are relooking at their infrastructure and planning policies with a renewed mindset to unlock spaces for urban farming, this very lack of space is making designers, planners and urban farmers alike to be more creative in finding ways to grow food in cities. The adjoining chart illustrates this with some examples of projects across Asia. It gives an insight into the gamut of spatial scales at which these farms are taking shape. Although there is no formal classification of urban farms, most of them
can be broadly categorised as either modern agrotech farms that are super specialised and high-yield driven; or community-based farms that are easier to manage and cultivate but are lower in their yields. It can be useful for designers to appraise the way both types of farming are integrated into various urban forms, either as an ancillary or as a primary function. The latter is producing bespoke building archetypes designed for farming green leafy vegetables, fruits, mushrooms and fish.
The following figures put the productive capacity of modern agrotech-based farms into perspective:
Apollo Aquaculture Group’s vertical fish farm can produce 150 to 200 kilogrammes per tonne of water of grouper vis-à-vis only 25 to 75 kilogrammes from a traditional sea-cage farm[14].
Sustenir Agriculture’s 54-square-metre farm produces 1 tonne of kale or 3.2 tonnes of lettuce per month, which is 14 to 127 times more than the yield from a traditional farm[15].
WHAT MORE DOES URBAN FARMING NEED?
Urban farming is multifaceted in nature. It has a symbiotic effect on several sectors and disciplines within any urban framework—like urban planning; health; waste management; water resources; energy sector; community development; ecology management; as well as on several financial and business institutions that may be supporting urban farming1. Therefore, policies and action plans that address each of these linked sectors should be encouraged to collectively create the environment within which urban farming can thrive and deliver. Based on its own experiences from several urban farming projects, the FAO prescribes five key considerations for cities to sustainably embed urban farming within their own policy programmes for food security. These are[16]:
Securing land and water resources.
Securing product quality, safety and environmental protection.
Securing sustainable appropriation by actors and partners.
Securing market outlet.
Securing political and institutional anchorage.
There are examples of cities that are already instituting policy changes to facilitate urban farming:
Cities like Vancouver (Canada); Colombo (Sri Lanka); Kampala (Uganda); Rosario (Argentina); Dar es Salaam (Tanzania); and Chicago (USA) are beginning to include spaces for community gardening in new public housing and slum upgrading projects[1].
The municipality of Beijing is promoting the development of peri-urban agro-tourism through large agro-recreational parks and family-based agro-tourism. It also enables farmers to offer various services to urban tourists to diversify their income source[1].
Paris has devised its own model called the Pariculteur. It is a series of town hall-mandated projects designed to cover as much of the city as possible with greenery via a rise in urban farming[17].
Singapore has created the Singapore Food Agency. It is purposed to solely focus on all aspects of food safety and security.
Urban farming is bound to grow quickly into a major economic sector in cities. The technologies and farming methods will continue to improve. It is also set to attract a whole generation of young, literate and passionate people who want to grow their own food. The number of people earning a livelihood from farming in developed countries is already showing an upward trajectory, signalling a demographic and cultural shift in these societies. In Germany, green-fingered and environmentally conscious millennials are leading a renewed demand for allotment gardens. As of September 2019, there were almost a million allotment garden tenants across the country[18].
Conducive policy actions on the part of the government and regulatory agencies shall go a long way in allowing these entrepreneurs to evolve. Their success will in turn instil greater confidence in financial institutions to lend their support, which has been lacking thus far. The 2019 United States Department of Agriculture’s toolkit also reported that farmers continue to struggle to find and finance suitable land for urban farming[20].
Urban farming promises the potential to create resilient cities that are productive, socially inclusive, food-secure and environmentally sustainable. But there also remains a host of unresolved issues (like policy frameworks, investment opportunities, market readiness, etc.) that urban farmers will have to continue to contend with. The production and selling of food items could also be rife with safety and liability issues. Producing food for people is a big responsibility and no business or individual should enter it without careful thought and planning[21].
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Farming Chart
BUILDING SCALE
Type 1 - Farming as an Ancillary Function
Characteristics:
Farming is integrated as an ancillary function to the ‘host’ building.
It is commonly done on horizontal spaces like roofs or terraces.
Production is for community consumption and may not be commercially
driven.
Community engagement and creating awareness are the main driving
factors.
The farming method used is mainly soil-based conventional methods:
community-centric.
4 Farming Kindergarten (Vietnam)
The rooftop farm produces vegetables (like mustard, lettuce, spinach, choi sum, amaranthus, etc.) which are served in the school canteen. A community farm that uses soil-based methods, it forms an essential part of the educational curriculum.5 Greenhost Boutique Hotel (Indonesia)
The designer used pipes as railings. These also serve as hydroponic planter tubes to cultivate green leafy vegetables and add to the guest experience. The produce, which includes mustard, lettuce, basil, mint, celery, etc., is served in the hotel restaurant.6 Pasona Group Headquarters (Japan)
This is a distinctive integration of various types of indoor farming into a functioning office. Both soil-based and hydroponics are used to cultivate rice, fruits and vegetables, which are farmed and consumed by the staff in the office cafeteria.7 Citiponics (Singapore)
This is a commercial farming model that uses unused urban roof spaces to install hydroponic set-ups and cultivate green leafy vegetables (like Chinese kale, bok choy, cai xin, etc.).
Type 2 - Intensive Farming in New Building Archetypes
Characteristics:
It could be a newly-built structure or an existing space that is retrofitted.
Farming is often vertical and production is high intensity for commercial
purposes.
They are innovative and groundbreaking set-ups that also help to
promote awareness about farming.
The farming techniques used are modern agrotech-based methods
relying on innovative engineering and information technology.
Ownership is primarily private. Their development requires considerable
captial investment.
8 Apollo Aquaculture Group (Singapore)
This is the world’s first vertical fish farm model that uses Apollo’s patented technologies. It is capable of producing various types of fish species and shrimps.9 Sustenir Agriculture (Singapore)
They use methods such as controlled environment agriculture (CEA) and hydroponics to grow a variety of non-native plants (like kale, strawberry, basil, lettuce, etc.) in indoor vertical farming set-ups.10 Sky Greens (Singapore)
Its vertical farming system consists of rotating tiers of growing troughs mounted on a A-shaped aluminium frame. These are housed inside climate- controlled greenhouses and produce vegetables like mini cai xin, jie lan and Chinese cabbage.
PRECINCT/DISTRICT SCALE
Type 1 - Community-centric
Characteristics:
Farming is commonly done on landed soil-based plots.
These can be found at varying urban scales, ranging from isolated plots
within housing estates to whole civic districts being planned around
farming.
Production is primarily for community consumption and may not be
commercially driven.
Recent trends show that certain cities are considering shifts to large
commercial farming districts that can anchor an agrotech-based
economy.
Most of these farms use conventional farming methods; but the new
farming districts are proposing agrotech-based set-ups.
11 Indonesia Berkebun (Indonesia)
It is a nationwide social-media run movement operated by volunteers. They identify vacant plots of land in the city, and initiate community-based farms on them.12 Oragno Naandi (India)
This is a housing community located outside of Hyderabad on a 35-acre plot of land. The community uses permaculture to restore soil quality and cultivate a range of crops on communal and individual plots.Tengah Housing District (Singapore)
Farming will form one of the themes for the new housing districts coming
up in Tengah. Named as Plantation District, it will cover 90 hectares and will feature a 700 metres by 40 metres strip of land called the Farmway. This will also include space for residents to experience hobby farming.
Type 2 - Production-centric
13 VertiVegies (Singapore)
It is building one of the largest indoor farms spreading over 2 hectares in Singapore. The facility will use hydrponics to grow vegetables in a clean, controlled, chemical-free environment. The space will be fitted with special filters, UV lights and sensors to regulate temperature, humidity and input of nutrients.
14 Sunqiao Urban Agricultural District (China)
A proposed master plan for a 100 hectares urban district in Shanghai.
It largely comprises vertical farming that will employ a combination of hydroponics; aquaponics; and soil-based cultivation to produce vegetables, fish, algae and a seed library. It will be a factory for food production as well as aid in education and anchoring urban development.
