Mr Cai Yinzhou asked the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment (a) regarding the closure of 24.5% of sea-based fish farms in 2024, how many of these farms have received Government grants prior to their closure; (b) what is the aggregate value of the grants received by them; and (b) what are the ongoing efforts to reduce the closures of open net cage fish farms.

Ms Grace Fu Hai Yien: Of the 26 sea-based fish farms that exited the industry in 2024, six farms had received close to $700,000 in total of grants to help them enhance their productivity. All of them had met their grant conditions.

The Singapore Food Agency has been partnering farms to enhance their commercial viability through capability and capacity building initiatives. This includes helping farms to strengthen their biosecurity to prevent and control diseases through the Aquatic Animal Health Services and supporting farms in upgrading capabilities and adopting technology through the Agri-Food Cluster Transformation Fund. Given our limited land, resources, and climate change, farms need to be highly productive, climate-resilient and resource-efficient to be commercially viable.

While the number of sea-based farms has decreased, overall productivity of the sector has increased from 38.6 tonnes per hectare per year in 2023 to 40.7 tonnes per hectare per year in 2024.

Link to Hansard: Link

Mr Cai Yinzhou asked the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment (a) for the local sea-based fish farm sector, whether there is information on the (i) average age of local farmers and (ii) proportion of workforce who are Singaporeans; (b) if so, what are they; (c) what strategies are there to attract and train local farmers; and (d) what efforts are made to mitigate environmental risks that open cage farms face.

Ms Grace Fu Hai Yien: In 2024, the sea-based fish farming sector has a workforce of approximately 400, of which about half are locals. We do not have data on the average age of local farmers within the sea-based farming sector.

The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) partners with the Institutes of Higher Learning to develop a range of pre-employment training and continuing education and training programmes, to build a local talent pipeline. For instance, in April 2024, SFA worked with Temasek Polytechnic to launch a new Specialist Diploma in Aquaculture Management and Technology. SFA also facilitates job matching to emplace local talents seeking a career in the agri-food sector, by working with WorkForce Singapore and the Employment and Employability Institute.

SFA has been supporting farms, including open-cage farms, to grow food in a more productive, resource-efficient and climate-resilient manner. This includes supporting farms in upgrading capabilities and adopting technology through the Agri-Food Cluster Transformation Fund and strengthening farms' biosecurity to prevent and control diseases through the Aquatic Animal Health Services.

Link to Hansard: Link

Mr Cai Yinzhou asked the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment (a) whether the Ministry has data on the proportion of local workers in the sea-based fish farm section who are graduates of local Institutes of Higher Learning or Continuing Education and Training programmes relevant to aquaculture; and (b) what proportion of these graduates are currently employed by existing farms that have received funding under the Agri-Food Cluster Transformation Fund.

Ms Grace Fu Hai Yien: The Singapore Food Agency does not collect data on the number of graduates from local Institutes of Higher Learning or relevant Continuing Education Training Programmes who have joined sea-based fish farms or recipients of the Agri-Food Cluster Transformation Fund.

Link to Hansard: Link

Mr Cai Yinzhou asked the Minister for Sustainability and the Environment (a) whether the Ministry has data on the total number of local farms that currently offer public tours or educational visits; (b) if so, what is the breakdown between land-based and sea-based farms; and (c) what enhanced steps and incentives are the Ministry taking to encourage more local farms to offer public engagement activities, strengthening community appreciation and boosting demand for local produce.

Ms Grace Fu Hai Yien: The public can refer to the Singapore Food Agency's (SFA's) website for a non-exhaustive list of local land-based farms that offer farm tours. For public safety and biosecurity reasons, visits to sea-based farms are not encouraged.

SFA has been focusing on supporting the growth of our local farms and raising their productivity, such as through the adoption of technologies. Nonetheless, SFA collaborates with industry and other agencies, such as the Ministry of Education, to raise awareness on the benefits of local produce among the community, such as through educational initiatives in schools on food security and supporting local produce.

Link to Hansard: Link