# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
"$alary Day" (2020) by Ramasamy Madhavan

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In Malay, "" means "to cook". In our childhood, " masak-masak" meant pretending to cook, but for many inmates in Singapore's prisons and Drug Rehabilitation Centres (DRCs) during the '70s and '80s, " masak " was a favourite pastime, but also a criminal offence.

A new book, "When Cooking Was A Crime: Masak In The Singapore Prisons, 1970s-1980s", offers a rare glimpse into prison life by exploring how food took on new meanings and tastes for those behind bars.

Writer and researcher Sheere Ng from the writing studio In Plain Words, which published the book, interviewed eight former inmates and documented their memories of cooking supper inside their cells and dormitories.

Former photojournalist Don Wong complements their stories with photographic recreations of 35 objects and dishes often used in the masak culture.

"In Singapore, food is strongly associated with family ties and national pride. Taking an interest in the other kinds of relationships with food, such as the ones that arose from deprivations in prisons, offers an opportunity to get to know people and situations different from our own," says Sheere.

"At the beginning of my research, instead seeing the creativity in masak for what it was, I counted it as an evidence for a 'criminal mind'. The term is ill-defined and unhelpful, preventing us from recognising inmates, former or present, as multifaceted individuals."

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
New Book Offers Unsavoury Glimpse Into 70s-80s Prison "Masak" Culture

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In Malay, "" means "to cook". In our childhood, " masak-masak" meant pretending to cook, but for many inmates in Singapore's prisons and Drug Rehabilitation Centres (DRCs) during the '70s and '80s, " masak " was a favourite pastime, but also a criminal offence.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
This was my best hawker meal on my recent trip home. Char kway teow for S$3.50 (S$1 = US$0.67) from Peter Fried Kway Teow Mee in Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market, and an afternoon coffee. The kway teow hawker uncle wore a lard-spattered t-shirt and flip flops and wielded a wok shovel-worn down until the blade was about an inch and a half long-to scrape at a wok the same size and shape of his considerable belly. You're basically eating lard and wok skill.

I hadn't planned this meal, as many people do when they seek out hawker food; I just happened to be in Tanjong Pagar with 20 minutes to kill, and went to the nearby food centre for a coffee. There I realised something smelled real good and followed my nose. This is what it means to have a hawker culture.

If you want to see this culture in the form I know and love, you'd better get to Singapore as soon as we can travel again, because no one thinks it's going to last much longer. You can read about the death of the hawker all over the internet, but today, I'll write about one dimension of what it might take to keep hawker culture alive: money.

My premise is this: for hawker culture in Singapore to last across generations, we must ensure that most hawkers make enough to live on. It is not enough to look at a few enjoying an unusual degree of financial success, particularly when this is usually achieved by cutting costs and thus diluting all the intangibles that make hawker food great. We need to ensure that the people running the chicken rice stall you've never heard of before-the one you stumble upon when you're looking for lunch in a strange neighborhood-can make a decent living too.

How much should I have paid the char kway teow uncle, if I want this experience to be available to my friends' children in the future?

This is a quick breakdown of what it costs to run a hawker stall, what it costs to live in Singapore, and how the two numbers compare. How much, in short, should I have paid the kway teow uncle, if I want this experience to be available to my friends' children in the future?

There are three parts to this analysis:

1. Estimate what it might take to live in Singapore, while feeling like you and your family are full and equal members of Singaporean society.

2. Outline what we know about the hawker business model, to estimate what most hawkers currently make.

3. Bring the two together for an estimate of how much a plate of char kway teow should cost if we want to keep hawkers in the profession.

How Much Money Do People Need?

Most discussions about how much money people need gravitate towards a minimum wage, and how much it should be. There are two problems with this approach.

First, Singapore's government has always flatly rejected any debate about instituting any general floor for wages, so we are left without an official number for what this might look like.

Second, the minimum wage, in its original sense of a legally mandated "lowest wage that employers may offer" is increasingly regarded as inadequate or outdated. Revisions generally do not keep pace with increases in the cost of living, and hence often fail to provide workers with sufficient income to have even a minimal quality of life.

For this reason, movements for a " living wage " have sprung up worldwide. A "living wage" is "the minimum income necessary for a worker to meet their basic needs". A needs-based approach and the commitment to meeting a minimum standard are key differences between a living and a minimum wage. However, the term "basic needs" introduces flexibility and uncertainty, because there is no standard list of basic needs. What constitutes a "basic need" is influenced by location, household type, cultural mores and other factors. There is also the question of whether non-physical needs should be considered "basic:" is feeling like a part of society a basic need, or do we just care about whether people can feed, clothe and house themselves?

To illustrate this dichotomy, it is instructive to consider the difference between the living wage campaigns in the US and the UK. The MIT Living Wage Project, on which many American living wage campaigns are based, calculates a living wage purely based on market prices drawn from databases compiled by governments and NGOs. According to their documentation,

"The living wage model does not allow for what many consider the basic necessities enjoyed by many Americans. It does not budget funds for pre-prepared meals or those eaten in restaurants. It does not include money for entertainment nor does it does not allocate leisure time for unpaid vacations or holidays."

The project's documentation actually states that what they calculate might better be thought of as a "minimum subsistence wage". It's enough to live on, but not enough to feel like a full and equal member of the society around you, let alone a valued one. Living on such a "living wage", in other words, tends to make people feel like members of some lower caste, whose greatest dream is that their children need not follow in their footsteps. This is the kind of existence that leads to people leaving the trade as soon as they can. ( I have written about this issue from the perspective of American restaurant food as well.)

On the other hand, the Living Wage Foundation in the UK bases its assessment of "basic needs" on the UK Minimum Income Standard (MIS), which does take into account non-physical needs, or needs that are established by social mores rather than the pure facts of survival.

"The Minimum Income Standard (MIS) refers to a research method establishing what incomes households require in order to reach a 'minimum' standard of living, appropriate for the place and time in which they live. It is reached by talking in depth to groups of members of the public, asking them to agree what goods and services households require in order to have such a living standard. The results are used to construct minimum budgets for different household types. MIS is about more than just what is needed to survive, and refers to what is required to be part of society, according to definitions produced in each country by members of the public." - from the What's Enough SG website

These intangibles are key to our discussion today, since we are asking not just what hawkers need to earn to meet their basic physical needs, but what they need to earn to feel like hawking is a reasonable choice of profession: one that, like any other, has its blessings and curses, but nonetheless enables its practitioners to be full participants in modern-day Singaporean society, rather than servants to other Singaporeans. The MIS methodology, through its use of focus group discussions and consensus, helps to take into account the social norms and values that are inherent to such a concept.

However, we don't yet know what the MIS for Singapore might be for most types of household. Researchers have published an MIS study that establishes a figure for elderly persons living alone or in couples, and are now working on a study for the same for young and working-age adults. Studies need to be undertaken across more household types for us to know how this might apply to hawkers.

A Minimum Income Standard isabout more than just what is needed to survive, and refers to what is required to be part of society ... to be full participants in modern-day Singaporean society, rather than servants to other Singaporeans.

Pending the conclusions of the What's Enough SG's MIS study for other household types, what we can do is attempt to estimate a level of income for hawkers that is not merely one that enables them to meet their immediate physical needs, but " to be part of society, according to definitions produced in each country by members of the public ".

I would like to stress that I am NOT attempting to estimate an MIS for non-elderly households in Singapore-the MIS requires in-depth research using the methodology of focus group discussion. All I am taking from the MIS is the assertion that non-physical needs, in particular the need to feel like a part of society, are as important as physical needs.

How Much Do You Need to Earn to Feel Like a Full Member of Singaporean Society?

I'm going to assume that our hawkers are Singaporean (this is actually a legal requirement for renting a hawker stall from the government), that they own a HDB flat (around 79% of Singaporeans live in an HDB flat they own), and that a typical hawker stall is run by a couple with one child, with both adults working at the stall. (I realise these norms aren't universal, but I'm trying to estimate what it costs to live the minimum cis-hetero-centric version of the "Singapore dream" that the government promotes.)

The Singaporean government published a Household Expenditure Survey (HES) for 2017/2018. It's extremely detailed, statistically representative, and best of all, comes with a minutely detailed Excel file. One major caveat is that it generally doesn't include the cost of housing.

Using this survey, I attempted to estimate an adequate income for a working Singaporean couple with one child. I'm assuming that such a household, if it can afford a median level of household expenditure (as defined by the HES), feels like a part of society, though we're probably all familiar with the sense that we're not quite keeping up with the neighbours. To this level of household expenditure, we need to add the cost of housing (remember that this is excluded from the HES) and a component for savings, and then account for the fact that all of this has to come out of post-tax income.

This approach has some similarities to that used by the UK Living Wage Foundation: they begin with a particular basket of goods and services that meets a household's physical and non-physical needs, then add in housing and savings (in their case, pension contributions) and account for the fact that this is all post-tax income. In my analysis, I use median expenditure as a stand-in for the basket of goods and services.

In Singapore, the average monthly expenditure, excluding cost of housing, for a household of three is $4,605. Median monthly expenditure, again excluding cost of housing, falls between $3,000 (37th percentile) and $3,999 (55th percentile). Therefore, $3,500 seems like a reasonable, round-number approximation, though the real median is probably a little higher.

Assuming our hawkers live in the cheapest available HDB unit (approximately $300,000) and put down the lowest possible downpayment, a standard 25-year mortgage results in a payment of about $1,000/month. Really calculating the cost of homeownership can be complicated because, among other things, there are several government subsidies available, but $1,000/month is probably close enough (for more detail, try this guide).

So far, our hawkers need to make $4,500/month, but this doesn't account for savings or taxes.

How much should our hawkers save? Singapore has a longstanding compulsory savings scheme ( the Central Provident Fund, or CPF) that effectively mandates that wage-earning Singaporeans save about 31% of their effective income. Between a quarter and a third of this goes toward a health savings scheme (MediSave). Hawkers, as self-employed individuals, do not have to contribute to the compulsory savings scheme except for the portion allocated to health savings.

In recent years, it has become increasingly clear that CPF alone does not provide Singaporeans with a comfortable retirement, meaning that our hawkers should really be saving more than this. Without getting deep into retirement calculations, let's assume that our hawkers should save at the rate of 31%, independent of their MediSave contribution. This gives us "higher than CPF" savings rate we specified. Since the mandatory contribution to MediSave is approximately 9%, we now know that $4,500/month should represent 60% of their post-tax income, meaning their total post-tax income should be $7,500/month.

Finally, taxes. Singapore's income tax calculators tell us that because they have a child, and Singapore has extremely generous child tax credits, our hawkers can avoid paying any income tax at all, meaning that our final income target for this hawker family is $7,500/month.

I should stress that this is not intended to be an MIS, since the MIS emphasises qualitative research and consensus, but it does seem to be a reasonable working estimate for the income a family of three might need in order to meet the intangible goals the MIS attempts to quantify.

So, How Do You Make $7,500 a Month as a Hawker?

In 2014, the National Environment Agency, which regulates hawkers, conducted a "Cost Component Survey" of the hawker trade, involving approximately 1,000 face-to-face interviews. Some results were published in a paper by government economists in 2015, including the chart below. (Please note the percentages add up to 100.8%. There is no explanation in the source for this. We have rounded the percentages down in our subsequent calculations so that they add up to 100%.)

National Environment Agency

The NEA repeated the survey in 2018, but, to the best of my knowledge, did not publish the results, other than to say that " the findings remained the same ".

Hawkers do not pay themselves a salary; they live on the take-home from the stalls. This survey thus tells us nothing at all about their earnings. The manpower component is the going rate for a hawker's hired assistant. It is common to hire such a helper, but it is also common for stalls to be family operations with no hired help. I have not found a reliable breakdown of how many stalls operate according to each model.

If we assume that a hawker's cost breakdown today is reasonably close to the one above, that provides some benchmarks from which we can estimate the cost of running a hawker stall. Recently published interviews suggest that the going salary for a hawker's assistant today falls between $1,800-2,400, while the average successful tender for a cooked food stall from the NEA was $1,514/month in 2018. Using these benchmarks, I performed two separate calculations, making one set of figures from the manpower number and one from the rent number (rounding decimals down); the results came out very close. Going forward, I will use the average of the two methods.

My $3.50 plate of char kway teow is reasonably representative of hawker food prices today-estimates generally converge on a figure of $3-4 per plate. Published interviews indicate that profit margins on the low end are 20-30 cents, though at least one older source suggests the average margin is higher. If, of the $3.50, 50 cents is profit and $3 is cost, these numbers give us the transaction count and take-home margins set out below.

These numbers seem plausible because published interviews suggest hawkers generally take home $1,500-$3,000/month. One commonly cited benchmark for being good enough to stay in business as a hawker (though I don't know where this comes from) is selling 200 plates a day.

...to enable hawkers to earn the wages that I estimated as necessary for them to truly participate in society, we really should be paying about 80 cents-or about 23%-more per plate.

Assuming the manpower cost goes straight to the household's bank account, because the intrepid couple run the stall together instead of hiring an assistant, their monthly income is $4,203. From this we can conclude that to enable hawkers to earn the wages that I estimated as necessary for them to truly participate in society, we really should be paying about 80 cents-or about 23%-more per plate.

A Few Caveats

At this point, our hawkers would make a median income, which should be enough to meet a basic living standard and allow them to save for the future. It is worth pointing out that the work is still incredibly hard, with most hawkers facing 12 to 14-hour workdays. We've actually already cut our theoretical hawkers a break, because many hawkers work six days a week, and our calculations assume a five-day workweek. It is worth asking if Singaporean norms are such that a median income is enough to attract people to a profession that poses such challenges.

It may be tempting to say: "Great, we'll slap an 80-cent surcharge on hawker food and declare victory." The most obvious problem with this idea is that it would have a devastating effect on the living costs of many Singaporeans. Quantifying that effect is beyond the scope of this article, as is deciding on an actual solution.

One Last Set of Numbers, and I'm Done

I'll close instead by offering a different way of measuring "enough", and citing another set of government statistics, because you can never have enough of those.

Singapore's Ministry of Manpower publishes a survey of occupational wages each year, which gives us a very concrete way of comparing how much Singaporean society today values hawkers-the living embodiment of one of the most precious elements of our culture-vis-à-vis other workers.

Comparing a hawker earning $2,100 today to the median gross wages for other professions, they are making about as much as a:

Fumigator / Pest and Weed Controller ($1,940)

Sales demonstrator ($2,100)

Mail carrier ($2,150)

Office cashier ($2,297)

If one half of our hawker couple makes $3,750, as our calculations suggest they might need to, this person would make as much as a:

Auditor - Accounting ($3,400)

Excavating/Trench digging machine operator ($3,602)

Operations officer (except transport operations) ($3,821)

After sales adviser/Client account service executive ($3,878)

And here are some professions where the median wage for an individual is approximately equal to the income of both members of our hawker couple put together:

Advertising/Public Relations Manager ($7,103)

Sales and marketing manager ($7,200)

Commodities derivatives broker ($7,588)

Business Development Manager ($7,760)

It is worth reflecting on how these comparative salaries square with the value our society claims to put on hawker culture. We do not make public pronouncements about how "After sales advisers" (but presumably not before sales advisers) contribute to the essential fabric of life in Singapore. We have not nominated advertising or public relations to UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. We do not talk about how much poorer life in Singapore would be if we were to lose all our Business Development Managers in the next 20-30 years. Yet we embrace and perpetuate a social and economic system that is essentially spawning more jobs like this, and that keeps Singaporean wages competitive partly by keeping the price of hawker food low, with the result that hawkers are driven out of the profession.

We embrace and perpetuate a social and economic system that is essentially spawning more jobs like this, and keeps Singaporean wages competitive partly by keeping the price of hawker food low, with the result that hawkers are driven out of the profession.

With thanks to Walter Theseira. I owe you a plate of char kway teow.

Further Reading About the Minimum Income Standard
Loughborough University's Minimum Income Standard for the United Kingdom What's Enough SG, a group of researchers working to calculate an MIS for Singapore Key Findings from What's Enough SG's research on an MIS for elderly households in Singapore A survey you can take if you're interested in participating in What's Enough SG's research
EDIT (26 Jan 2021): The MIS focus groups have ended and they are no longer seeking volunteers. We have removed the link to the page to volunteer.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How Much Should Hawker Food Cost in Singapore? - New Naratif

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
This was my best hawker meal on my recent trip home. Char kway teow for S$3.50 (S$1 = US$0.67) from Peter Fried Kway Teow Mee in Tanjong Pagar Plaza Market, and an afternoon coffee.

# data[].attributes.body
Oral history with home cooks

# data[].attributes.headline
IN FOCUS: How climate change can threaten food production in Singapore

# data[].attributes.subject
IN FOCUS: How climate change can threaten food production in Singapore

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
(Updated: )
Share this content

SINGAPORE: While some cheer the cool weather when storms hit Singapore, 40-year-old farmer Chai Nian Kun says to himself: "Jialat" - an expression of concern over what is to come.

Heavy rain is not uncommon in tropical Singapore.

But days of continuous downpours can wreak havoc on many of his organic vegetables, which grow outdoors on a three-hectare plot in Lim Chu Kang.

Too much rain can inundate the greens or encourage the growth of pests that feed on them. Last month, short but heavy thundery showers across several days did just that to his crops.

Even though it is the monsoon season, Mr Chai said it has been raining "much more than it should", an assessment he has made about the past few years as well.

Not only has rain been beating down harder, but it has been getting warmer too, he said.

"If you compare this to many years ago, the seasonal effects were clearer. But now (the) climate change effect has turned everything upside down."

Climate change - expressed here through hotter temperatures, more rainfall and rising sea levels - is putting local food production under stress in many different ways, experts said.

It is a pressing concern, they added, especially in light of the island's ambitions to strengthen its food security.

Singapore is aiming to produce 30 per cent of its nutritional needs by 2030, up from the less than 10 per cent it currently produces.

As a nation heavily reliant on food imports, Singapore's strategy of source diversification has served it well, but the focus on local production is important because it is "our most secure source of food", said Mr Goh Wee Hou, the director of the Food Supply Strategies Department at the Singapore Food Agency (SFA).

"It will help to mitigate our reliance on imports and serve as a buffer during supply disruptions."

"What we want to achieve is for 30 per cent of each 'plate' to be locally produced, though the proportion of food groups that constitute this 30 per cent will continue to evolve as we approach 2030," he added.

Singapore has about 220 farms, producing mainly vegetables, eggs and fish.

In 2019, these farms produced 14 per cent of Singapore's leafy vegetable needs, 26 per cent of its eggs and 10 per cent of fish.

Could climate change stem these aspirations to grow more?
ISLAND HAS BECOME WARMER AND WETTER
Temperature records dating back to 1948 show that Singapore has warmed, in particular from the 1970s onwards, said Dr Benjamin Horton, the director of the Earth Observatory of Singapore.

"On average, the air temperature in Singapore has increased 0.25 degrees Celsius per decade. This is about double the global average," he said.

He explained this is because Singapore suffers not just from the impact of global warming, but also the urban heat island effect, where asphalt and concrete from urban development have replaced greenery and waterways, trapping more heat.

Higher rainfall is linked to that. Though levels fluctuate over time due to natural processes, records from as far back as 1875 reveal a "significant increasing trend from the 1980s to present day", Dr Horton said.

"Rainfall totals have been increasing around a centimetre per year. If we look at the last decade, it was the wettest on record.

"The total volume of rain has been bigger, but the total duration has also been shorter. That obviously means it has more intensity, leading to greater frequency of urban flooding."

Today, the average sea level around the island today is 14cm above pre-1970 levels, said the Meteorological Service Singapore (MSS) in March this year in its annual climate assessment.

Such trends will come to affect the way Singapore produces food - be it eggs, vegetables or fish, in outdoor or indoor farms, according to Professor Paul Teng, adjunct senior fellow at Nanyang Technological University's S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies.

It also very likely means that food production costs - and consequently, food costs - will increase in Singapore, said Dr Horton.
HOW VEGETABLES ARE AFFECTED
For Mr Chai, the changing weather conditions mean vegetables are harder to grow, including certain popular varieties like chye sim and xiao bai cai.

He said that these species, brought in by the population's Chinese ancestors, grow better in cooler, windier conditions.

"Growing these vegetables year-round was almost no problem in the past when Singapore's weather wasn't so hot ... But now it's different."

The changeable weather is also not good for the vegetables, such as when it pours but then becomes scorching hot afterwards, he told CNA.

The farmer added that all this has made it more difficult to predict yields, which impacts operations.

"Whether there is good yield or not is up to the weather. And now, we never know what the weather will give us."

Evelyn Eng, 76, who has been running Green Circle Eco-farm for about two decades, shared this experience. Her plot is also an organic outdoor farm.

"There was one customer who used to come every week for two to three kilograms of kailan. But after a while, I wasn't able to supply him anymore because sometimes I had it, sometimes I didn't," said Mdm Eng.

She also pinned this on the fact that kailan is more suited for cooler climates but Singapore has become warmer.

"I noticed also that even when there were no monsoons, the vegetables somehow, year after year, seemed to decline a bit and were not doing so well. The yield kept on dropping."

On the other hand, indoor high-tech farms are more shielded from the impact of these weather changes, said Prof Teng.

They vary from hydroponic farms to vertical farms with artificial lighting and temperature-controlled environments. However, they are only protected to a certain extent.

"If the temperature goes up, the energy expense of cooling and maintaining the conditions to favour growth also goes up," said Prof Teng, an expert in food security who has been studying the topic for over three decades.

This applies to Singapore's egg farms as well, most of which are indoors.

Chew's Agriculture, an egg farm, added that climate change could jeopardise its supply chain, especially its feed supply for the chickens.

"The warming climate could result in poor harvest and/or inferior quality of critical raw ingredients," the firm said.
FISH PRODUCTION THE MOST VULNERABLE: PROF TENG
Out of the three categories, fish production is Prof Teng's biggest concern.

"I would consider our fish aquaculture to be most vulnerable. The reason I say this is because most of our fish farming is still done in the open seas, even by big farms," he told CNA.

There are 109 sea-based fish farms here and 12 land-based ones, according to SFA's website.

Environmental changes affect farms differently, based on their location, their systems and the type of fish they produce.

For Barramundi Asia, which nets 700 tonnes of fish a year, the increase in water temperature may help their livestock grow faster.

"But the thing is, what also thrives in warmer temperatures is bacteria, viruses and microbiomes," said Tan Ying Quan, the firm's senior business development manager.

He also said "shifting climatic patterns" could contribute to this, adding a layer of variability.

While there has not been a severe uptick in the incidence of health issues, it is concerning because "all commercial operations require predictability", he said.

That comes on top of possible water salinity or pH changes, caused by having more carbon dioxide in the atmosphere or changing rain patterns.

Mr Tan is not certain whether and how these will impact his farm because they are not well-researched in context of Singapore's waters, he said.

But he counts himself lucky because the farm has not suffered from harmful algal blooms, which involve toxic overgrowth of algae.

The phenomena wiped out about 500 tonnes of fish in 2015, causing farmers losses of millions of dollars.

The main cause of such blooms: runoff water with excessive nutrients, such as from fertiliser use in agriculture, flowing into the sea, according to Prof Teng.

Coastal fish farms, also known as kelongs, are more likely to suffer from this because they are nearer the shore with weaker currents.

This risk mounts with more severe expressions of climate change. Warmer water temperatures encourage algae growth and erratic rainfall patterns may cause more nutrient runoff.

Though Mr Tan's farm is deeper in the sea where there are stronger currents, he is still wary of the risk: "While we don't have harmful algal blooms, I don't think it's something that will never happen."
USING TECH TO MAKE FARMING MORE LIKE "MANUFACTURING"
To deal with environmental changes, Barramundi Asia has invested more in surveillance technology, using data collection and monitoring to better understand how climate change is affecting its fish.

"We then step up efforts to ensure (infrastructure) is in top condition so that if there are weather patterns that create stress, our fish are still comfortable," he said.

For example, with higher temperatures, there is more biofouling, so the nets are cleaned out more often to make sure they do not get clogged up.

With help from SFA, another outdoor vegetable farm, Ho Ka Clean, has implemented an electrical film roll-up system, with a greenhouse roof that automatically opens and closes depending on the temperature and weather, to better protect its produce.

"This is why technology - with the important advantage of being resistant to climate change - is the key enabler to help farms boost capability and productivity," said SFA's Mr Goh.

He noted how farming technologies, such as indoor multi-storey LED lighting vegetable farms or Recirculating Aquaculture Systems can produce 10 to 15 times more vegetables and fish per hectare than traditional vegetable and land-based fish farms.

Ultimately, SFA envisages farming to become "like manufacturing - where production takes place within a controlled environment with a defined input", he told CNA.

"The result is an assured and consistent output, and a predictable way to address the effects of climate change and extreme weather."

Crucially, it can also "tighten the food production loop, improve circularity" and thus, reduce the impact of food production on the environment, he said.

For instance, Chew's Agriculture is completing a waste-to-energy plant that will allow it to convert chicken manure into electricity.
WHY SOME FARMS DON'T USE TECH
Even with all the touted benefits of technology, some farmers wave away the suggestion.

They include 62-year-old Peter Ong, the owner of Sin Bee Fish Farm, a kelong that produces 10 tonnes of fish a year.

"The sum of money is a lot to invest. It exceeds what we are able to afford so I've never really considered it before," said Mr Ong, who farms sea bass and groupers.

This is despite the fact that he believes changes in the water might be behind the slowing growth of his fish.

For others like Fire Flies' Mr Chai, the investment might not bear fruit quickly enough to make sense.

The lease for his plot is due to expire in end-2021, following a two-year extension he got in 2019.

"We will try to adopt the technology in our means ... but usually high-tech stuff is very expensive, you pour in the money, and it will take a while before you see the results," he said.

Prof Teng added: "The bottom line is that if you have bottomless pools of money, technology is the solution. But a lot of our smaller farmers do not."
GROW WITH THE FLOW
Some also do not feel that they need technology to deal with climate change.

Take Mdm Eng for instance, who said her solution is simply to grow whatever is growing best at the time in her "food forest", with over 100 varieties of plants.

That would be better than forcing nature to produce a specific set of crops, she said.

"I tell new customers, sometimes you have to order a basket and we put whatever vegetables we have ... This is what nature dictates. You have to eat according to what nature can give."

She has also shifted her focus towards local "kampong" vegetables which "flourish without much labour at all".

These include sweet potato leaves, moringa leaves, wild watercress, asystasia and wild pepper leaves.

"If you're willing to eat these native kampong vegetables, you don't have to worry about climate change," she said, adding that the greens continue to grow "extremely well" in spite of weather changes.

SFA's Mr Goh said the agency is aware that different farmers are at different degrees of readiness to adopt technology.

"However, regardless of the stage they are at, there is always some form of suitable technology that can help raise productivity. For example, traditional farms can adopt technology such as drip irrigation and automated greenhouses to improve their yields."

"We also understand that some long-time farmers who are used to their own farming methods may find it difficult to change.

"This is why we have various strategies in place to incentivise and encourage them ... such as funding support and providing account managers to assist and advise farms," he said.

One such fund is the S$63 million Agriculture Productivity Fund (APF), which funds technology to help farms boost yields and increase production capabilities.

As of end November 2020, S$42.6 million has been committed to help 118 companies, including vegetable, fish, egg, shrimp and beansprout farms.
VULNERABILITIES WILL BECOME MORE ACUTE: EXPERTS
Tech or no tech, farms worldwide face a potential reckoning on the horizon.

Dr Horton warned that the warmest year ever recorded was 2016, when there was "human-induced global warming, superimposed on the El Nino effect", referring to a warm, wet part of a naturally occurring weather cycle.

"Right now we are in a sort of neutral phase ... The next big worry is when is the next El Nino is going to be, which would cause a huge spike in temperatures."

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has also estimated that climate change will result in a decline in crop yields of up to 25 per cent by 2050.

At the same time, the United Nations projects that global food demand will rise by 60 per cent by 2050 due to global population growth.

"There is no assurance that global food production can keep up with global food demand," SFA's Mr Goh said.

Here, the Centre for Climate Research has sounded the alarm on a possible increase in daily mean temperature of 1.4 to 4.6 degrees Celsius towards the end of the 21st century, with more intense and frequent heavy rainfall, and a mean sea level rise of up to one metre.

With this urgency, especially in land scarce Singapore, Mr Goh emphasised that it is crucial for farms to adopt technology to produce more on less land.

"If farms do not leverage on technology, it will be very difficult to produce enough food locally for local production to be a significant buffer against import disruptions," he said.

IS THERE STILL A PLACE FOR OLD SCHOOL FARMERS IN THE FUTURE?
As Singapore charges ahead towards its goals of future-proofing its food security with technology, there have been concerns about what this spells for traditional farmers.

"If the 'traditional farmers' do not upgrade themselves and their farming systems, they will either work as a wage labour in industrial farming or leave the profession altogether," said Associate Professor Md Saidul Islam, a coordinator of the Environment and Sustainability Research Cluster at the Nanyang Technological University.

Sustainability and Environment Minister Grace Fu said last month that authorities would not "dictate" farming methods.

"But in the end, we'll look at what can you produce. And that to us is important because we have to deal with a land constraint and a land budget in a way. And then we have to meet our goals," she said.

SFA said it awards land by assessing both price and concepts that farms pitch, to make sure those "with the best concepts - concepts that employ ... productive technologies to maximise food production" - get the land.

Mr Chai is doubtful about getting another space like his current 3ha plot.

Although he is not certain about where he will end up, he is confident about the value that traditional farmers, like himself, continue to offer society.

He pointed out that a lot of new players want to go high-tech, but they do not have the necessary farming experience.

"All these older farmers here have fine-tuned the processes over many years already, so they have a lot of value to add," he told CNA.

Prof Teng agrees. "I'm a big proponent of having legacy farms. We don't want all our food production to be from factory farms, controlled environment farms ... There should be a diversity of farming methods," he said.

"Apart from food production and security, some of our smaller legacy farms might also be able to introduce diversity to diet, such as indigenous veggies."

He noted how legacy farms in the US sell "heirloom varieties" that large commercial farms do not offer.

Another reason is more sentimental.

"Singapore changes so much in terms of landscape, it'll be sad if we don't have that rural landscape that is still part of our culture and history," he said, adding that it is a place for city folk to learn about traditional food production.

Nevertheless, Prof Teng acknowledged that the "bulk of food security" will have to come from high-tech farms.
OTHER WAYS TO BUFFER THE IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON FOOD PRODUCTION
Focusing on local food production is also only one lever of food security.

It is impossible to ignore the fact that Singapore imports 90 per cent of its food from more than 170 countries.

This exposes it to price and supply fluctuations, as well as threats of food supply disruption and contamination internationally, Mr Goh said.

While Singapore works to tackle climate change at home, its success also relies very heavily on how well its sources handle their own food resilience.

"Therefore, developing environmentally friendly and climate-resilient production systems (with) the neighboring nations is necessary for Singapore. Singapore with its technological know-how can certainly help," said Assoc Prof Islam.

Another big part of the equation: educating consumers and changing their behaviour.

Mdm Eng said: "The productivity is there - I have an excess of kampong vegetables to sell ... but people's preferences haven't caught up."

"They still prefer the leafy Chinese vegetables that are harder to grow here," she said.

On changing consumer tastes, Dr Horton added the population should also be persuaded to shift their diet away from carbon-intensive meat towards more vegetables.

As Assoc Prof Islam put it, "focusing on technology is important, but it must be accompanied by developing new generations (that embrace) green reflexivity".

In addition, he argued that social policies and community engagements are necessary, specifically for issues such as curbing food waste.

Singapore produced 744 million kg of food waste last year, the equivalent of two bowls of rice per person per day, according to the Sustainability and Environment Ministry.

"A lot of consumers have never (grown vegetables before), they just buy it from a supermarket shelf, without knowing the work and time these plants need," said Mr Chai.

He added that recent moves by authorities to distribute free edible seeds to households are a step in the right direction.

It will educate people about plant growth, he said, and perhaps sow seeds of interest in "farming" at home.

That too might go some way to boost Singapore's food security aspirations amid the threat of climate change.
Listen to food security expert Dr Paul Teng talk to CNA Digital Chief Editor Jaime Ho about how Singapore, which imports 90 per cent of its food, tackles food insecurity in the latest episode of The Climate Conversations podcast:

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
IN FOCUS: How climate change can threaten food production in Singapore

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
(Updated: ) Share this content SINGAPORE: While some cheer the cool weather when storms hit Singapore, 40-year-old farmer Chai Nian Kun says to himself: "Jialat" - an expression of concern over what is to come. Heavy rain is not uncommon in tropical Singapore.

# data[].attributes.headline
Employment of Foreign Manpower Act (EFMA) by Ministry of Manpower (MOM)

# data[].attributes.subject
Employment of Foreign Manpower Act (EFMA) by Ministry of Manpower (MOM)

# data[].attributes.body
Under this act, employers are required to provide 'adequate food' to their Migrant Domestic Workers (MDWs). However, in HOME's experience, employers are only taken to task for not providing 'adequate food' in extreme cases, such as when a MDW experiences severe weight loss or health issues as a result of not eating properly over a prolonged period of time.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
As an employer, you are responsible for the health and well-being of your foreign domestic worker (FDW). You must provide for rest days, proper accommodation, adequate medical care and safe work conditions.

Rest days

To ensure that your foreign domestic worker gets enough mental and physical rest, you should allow her to have a regular rest day.

Your FDW is entitled to a weekly rest day if her Work Permit was issued or renewed after 1 January 2013.

You and your FDW must mutually agree on which day of the week she should take the rest day. To avoid disputes, both of you should have this agreement in writing.

If your FDW agrees to work on her rest day, you must compensate her with one of the following:

To find out more on the rest day requirement, read the press release on weekly rest days for foreign domestic workers.

You can contact us at mom_fmmd@mom.gov.sg if you have questions about the weekly rest day.

Initial difficulties

A new FDW from a rural area may encounter some of these difficulties:

Understanding and communicating in your language.

Using modern household appliances.

Adjusting to living in high-rise buildings.

Having different practices in taking care of children.

She will need time to familiarise herself with your way of life. You can help by taking time to orientate and train her, especially in the early stages of her employment.

Accommodation

You must ensure that your FDW's accommodation meets the following requirements:

Adequate shelter: the accommodation must adequately protect your FDW from environmental elements such as sun, rain or strong winds.

Basic amenities: you must minimally provide your FDW with a mattress, pillow, blanket, bathroom amenities and toiletries. Examples of toiletries include soap, shampoo, toothbrush, toothpaste, etc.

Sufficient ventilation: your FDW's accommodation must be sufficiently ventilated. Mechanical ventilation (e.g. electrical fan) must be provided if natural ventilation is inadequate.

Safety: your FDW must not sleep near any dangerous equipment or structure that could potentially cause harm or hurt to her.

Modesty: your FDW must not sleep in the same room as a male adult or teenager. If you install video recording devices at home, you must inform your FDW of the devices and where they are placed. You must not install them in areas that will compromise her privacy or modesty, e.g. where she sleeps, change clothes, or the bathroom area.

Space and privacy: you should provide your FDW with a separate room. If that is not possible, you must ensure that her accommodation has adequate space and privacy.

Adequate food

You must provide your FDW with 3 meals a day.

An example of a day's food intake for a female engaged in moderate activity is as follows:

Breakfast: 4 slices of bread with spread.

Lunch: 1 bowl of rice + three-quarter cup of cooked vegetables + palm-sized amount of meat (fish/poultry/beef/lamb) + fruit

Dinner: 1 bowl of rice + three-quarter cup of cooked vegetables + palm-sized amount of meat (fish/poultry/beef/lamb) + fruit

Be sensitive to your FDW's needs when it comes to food. Do not force your FDW to eat food that she is not supposed to or is not comfortable with. For example, your FDW may not be able to eat certain food due to her religious beliefs, or she may not be accustomed to your family's dietary requirements (e.g. vegetarian food or porridge).

Medical care

As an employer, you are responsible for your FDW's medical needs.

You must bear the full cost of any medical care, including hospitalisation, and provide her with medical and personal accident insurance.

Open communication

You FDW may experience homesickness and loneliness. You can help her cope with those feelings by teaching her how she could contact her family and how she could send letters home.

Family integration

You should try your best to integrate your FDW into your family. You can do that by being patient and tolerant and making an effort to understand her background.

Safe work conditions

You must ensure that the FDW works safely. She will have to follow the approved work practices stipulated in MOM's training materials and courses (e.g. the Employers' Orientation Programme).

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Rest days and well-being for foreign domestic worker

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
As an employer, you are responsible for the health and well-being of your foreign domestic worker (FDW). You must provide for rest days, proper accommodation, adequate medical care and safe work conditions. To ensure that your foreign domestic worker gets enough mental and physical rest, you should allow her to have a regular rest day.

# data[].attributes.headline
HOME Survey on Nutritional Intake of Foreign Domestic Workers: Findings

# data[].attributes.subject
HOME Survey on Nutritional Intake of Foreign Domestic Workers: Findings

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
My employer only gave me instant noodles three meals a day. Sometimes, she throws some rice in the noodles or gave me some bread when I told her the food was not enough. I had no vegetables, meat or fruit,' Louise (not her real name) said when she was hospitialised last year for severe weight loss.

In one year, she lost 20 kg and had stopped menstruating.

Such accounts are not new. Last year, Humanitarian Organisation for Migration Economics (HOME) saw a 20% increase in the number of residents in its shelter who complained of nutritional neglect by their employers.

As many as 8 in 10 complained that inadequate food was a problem for them. Some domestic workers were not even provided food at all and had to buy them on their own. Others complained that their employers scolded them for eating too much, and this made them fearful of taking more during meals to sustain them throughout the day as they did their chores.
HOME Survey on Nutritional Intake of Foreign Domestic Workers: Findings
HOME conducted a survey among 43 women living in our shelter to determine the extent of nutritional neglect among foreign domestic workers who came to the organisation for assistance, the majority being from the Philippines and Myanmar.

The survey found that 40% of the women were always or often hungry while living with their employer. Only less than one out of every tenth participant (9%) were never or rarely hungry. Additionally, the vast majority (79%) reported weight lost whilst working in Singapore.

12% did not have three meals a day and fewer than half of the respondents (44%) were allowed to help themselves to food in the fridge or cupboard in their last employer's house.

Meals were reportedly mostly eaten at reasonable times with the majority eating breakfast between 6am and 9am, lunch between 12pm and 2pm and dinner between 7pm and 10pm.

However two respondents ate breakfast at 5am and two had dinner at 11pm or later.

Most respondents (72%) had their meals in the kitchen. Whilst 12% ate at the family table, another 12% ate on the floor of the kitchen or their room.

Only 30% of respondents were given food that they liked and 26% did not eat freshly cooked food. Just under half (44%) were allowed to help themselves to food from the fridge or cupboards.
What they eat?
The majority (74%) of respondents ate the same food as their employer. Respondents were also asked about the type of food they were given and how often they ate rice, bread, noodles, vegetables, meat or tofu, fruit and eggs.

We found that 49% ate 14-20 servings a week (approximately 2 servings per day) and 30% ate only 7-13 servings per week, approximating to 1 portion a day of carbohydrates.

The majority (70%) ate vegetables everyday although 7% said they never ate vegetables. 44% ate meat or tofu everyday, but 14% also never had meat or tofu. Eggs were also commonly eaten, with 12% having them every day and 60% having them between once and three times a week.

Fruit, however, was far less common in their diets, with nearly half (49%) saying that they ate no fruit in a typical week.
Response to nutritional neglect
Regulations about the provision of food are vaguely worded in Singapore's Employment of Foreign Manpower Act. Employers are only legally obliged to provide adequate food and this is not clearly defined.

Domestic workers are often afraid of asking for more food for fear of angering their employers.

Homekeeper's managing director Carene Chin was quoted in The Straits Times that domestic workers should be "smart enough" to ask for an extra helping of food. "If you're scared and don't dare to ask, you should not complain that your employer is not kind enough," she said, adding that maids can always stock up on extra food on their days off.

"If you're scared and don't dare to ask, you should not complain that your employer is not kind enough," she said, adding that maids can always stock up on extra food on their days off.

Such views ignore the fact that domestic workers do not have much bargaining power and are entirely dependent on the employer, especially during the first six to 8 months of their employment when they do not receive any salary as they are still paying off their recruitment debts.

In statement released to the media last year, the Ministry of Manpower said:

MOM takes any form of ill-treatment of FDWs seriously, and will look into all suspected offences. Where substantiated, the FDW can look for an alternative employer. Employers who fail to provide FDWs with adequate food may be fined up to $10,000 and/or jailed up to 12 months...

In the overwhelming majority of these complaints, MOM found that there was no deliberate withholding of food. Usually, the FDWs were unaccustomed to taking certain types of food or the smaller food portions provided, but had not told their employers. These cases were amicably resolved following clarifications between the FDWs and their employers.

Difficult to file complaints
In HOME's experience, domestic workers often find it difficult to file complaints about inadequate food because MOM's demand that the worker prove she has not been adequately fed is difficult to do.

It is easy for employers to deny any wrongdoing. Given the uncertainty of MOM's response to this issue, many domestic workers choose not to complain or they risk losing their jobs after.

Even in instances where there is evidence that a worker has lost a significant amount of weight, the Ministry may not accept such complaints as legitimate.

We have observed that complaints about inadequate food are only taken seriously when a worker has to be hospitalised or a when a doctor certifies she has suffered from malnutrition.

But do migrant workers have to be starved to the brink of severe deprivation in order for their complaints to be taken seriously?
Little control over what or how much they can eat
Domestic workers who come to the HOME shelter have left their employers for reasons ranging from non-payment of salary, illegal deployment to psychological or physical abuse. What is worrying are the numbers who received insufficient food and went hungry, and the large proportion who have lost weight during their time in Singapore.

Whilst many ate the same food as the families they lived with and had a broadly healthy range of carbohydrates, protein and vegetables, the finding that 30% only received one portion of rice, bread or noodles a day suggests that many employers did not provide enough carbohydrates for women engaged in long hours of physical labour.

Since FDWs work and live in their employers' homes, they have no control over what, or how much, they eat. Many get served in measured portions, where the employer decides on the quality and the amount. But not all employers realise that physical domestic work burns two to three times as many calories as a desk job.
Regulatory challenges
Ministry of Manpower's 'Your Guide to Employing a Foreign Domestic worker', defines guidelines on the employers' responsibilities when it comes to medical costs, accommodation, rest days, and safety.

Though, no information is provided on how to provide suitable and sufficient food, aside from the fact that the employer is responsible to bear the cost. The Employer's Orientation Programme (EOP) includes a section on food, but this course is only required for first time employers and the information within it is not available once the orientation has been completed.

Sufficient nutritional attention prevents deficiencies in nutrition and psychological (e.g. mental health) and physical (e.g. iodine or iron deficiency, death) consequences of malnutrition.

MOM needs to raise awareness amongst all employers regarding the quantity, quality and cultural and religious appropriateness of food for domestic workers.

If they are not allowed to control what, and how much, they eat, and if employers struggle to understand their employees' nutritional needs, then MOM needs to offer clear and specific guidelines on this matter, and be more proactive in investigating employers who neglect the dietary health of their domestic workers.

Louise regained some weight after staying at HOME's shelter, and has since found a new employer. There is no word from MOM if her previous employer was prosecuted for not providing adequate food.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Do Foreign Domestic Workers Get Enough Food? - HOME

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
My employer only gave me instant noodles three meals a day. Sometimes, she throws some rice in the noodles or gave me some bread when I told her the food was not enough. I had no vegetables, meat or fruit,' Louise (not her real name) said when she was hospitialised last year for severe weight loss.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
SINGAPORE - Over nine in 10 Bangladeshi migrant workers here are given unclean and unhygienic food to eat from caterers, a new survey has found.

Most also complained that they do not get enough food, according to a survey of 500 workers led by a National University of Singapore (NUS) research centre.

"In our research we thought salary disputes was the main thing they faced, but through talking to the workers it turned out that food was a bigger problem," said Professor Mohan J. Dutta, director of the Center for Culture-Centred Approach to Research and Evaluation (Care), speaking at a media conference on Thursday.

"That food can be so integral to health can be something so simple but easily overlooked."

The two-year research project funded by an NUS grant also saw a month-long awareness campaign launched on Thursday to highlight the food issues migrant workers face. This includes a television commercial, bus and MRT ads and a 10-minute documentary.

One issue Prof Dutta and his team found over the course of their two-year project was that despite clear regulations on how long food can be stored and how it should be labeled, many packets of food did not have labels.

"Workers mentioned falling sick from eating the food," he said, adding that many workers reported food meant for lunch being prepared by companies 12 hours earlier.

The workers surveyed were contacted at MRT stations, Little India, grocery stores, dormitories and through migrant worker group HealthServe, which partnered Care in the project.

Separately, a survey by migrant worker group TWC2 of 195 maids found that four in 10 of those who did not get a weekly day did not receive payment in lieu. Some 20 respondents had no days off at all.

The survey was conducted from July 2013 to October 2014, after it became mandatory at the start of 2013 for employers to give maids one rest day a week or payment in lieu.

In its report, TWC2 made several recommendations to the Government, including stepping up random checks on employers to enforce the weekly day off legislation.

It also recommended giving maids the same provisions as those under the Employment Act so that they are entitled to a full 24-hour rest period each week and to double their daily wage as compensation for working on their day off. The survey found that the average compensation maids received, if they did receive any, was $17.50, or around one day's pay.
joseow@sph.com.sg

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
More than 9 in 10 Bangladeshi foreign workers say they are given unclean and unhygenic food: NUS survey

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
SINGAPORE - Over nine in 10 Bangladeshi migrant workers here are given unclean and unhygienic food to eat from caterers, a new survey has found. Most also complained that they do not get enough food, according to a survey of 500 workers led by a National University of Singapore (NUS) research centre.

# data[].attributes.body
Part 2:

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
There are over a hundred food assistance groups helping the needy. But why are good intentions sometimes falling short of meeting needs - and can groups overcome their differences to work together?

(Updated: )
Share this content

SINGAPORE: At 9am every day, 80-year-old Ho Hon Kee hobbles slowly on arthritic, bowed legs down to his void deck, to collect two styrofoam boxes of cooked food given out by a charity kitchen.

Today's free meals - one for his lunch, one for dinner - consist of generous servings of rice, stir-fried spinach, a braised soy sauce egg, and fried ikan kuning. It's more than enough for his modest appetite, but there's more to come.

Upstairs, on his return, he finds by the door of his one-room flat another still-warm packet of food, this one left by his Meals-on-Wheels provider. There'll be another meal drop-off from them in the afternoon, bringing the day's total to four.

Inside the untidy flat, there's no space at the small dining table for Uncle Ho to sit and eat. That's because there's a small mountain of donated biscuits (cream-filled, hi-fibre wheat crackers, oatmeal cookies, even croutons) and two unopened loaves of white bread. Elsewhere, on the floor and other random surfaces, lie months-old unopened snacks and other food packs.

"A lot of food hor?" he remarks sheepishly in Mandarin. "People bring to my doorstep; sometimes they're from the Residents' Committee (RC), sometimes the church nearby."

He's tried eating some of the cookies and croutons, but they are too dry. And too hard for his dentures and toothless gums.

As for how he gets through four packed meals a day, he doesn't. He picks out what he likes.

"Slowly eat, cannot finish just throw," he said, urging us to take one box back to the office with us.

Having too much food sounds like a happy problem for old folks like Uncle Ho, who finds it a struggle to walk to the coffee shop and who doesn't have the equipment to cook at home.
WATCH: Hunger in Singapore - the documentary, part 2 (19:53) WHEN HELP IS TOO MUCH
Surely, it's better to have too much help, than none at all?

But Uncle Ho's surfeit reveals the complexities involved with Singapore's "many helping hands"-based landscape of food assistance.

In a 2018 paper on food insecurity, researchers from the Lien Centre for Social Innovation identified a total of 125 food support organisations based on their online presence. They range from non-profit organisations and charities with Institutions of a Public Character (IPC) status, to soup kitchens, Meals-On-Wheels providers, and informal volunteer groups.

And yet, the study also found that more than half of the 44 severely food-insecure households interviewed had infrequent or no food support at all - which suggests inefficiencies in the charitable food support eco-system.

Charities that CNA Insider spoke to say the duplication of assistance comes down to the lack of coordination or information-sharing among the groups.

Nizar Mohd Shariff, 49, who founded Free Food For All (FFA) six years ago to provide free halal meals for the less fortunate of any race or religion, was "shocked" when he realised that the beneficiaries he was serving were getting help from multiple sources. "Why is there no central database that indicates if this person has already received food from an organisation?" he asked.

At Ang Mo Kio, for instance, "the residents told us that between FFA and whatever they were getting from others, there was just too much for them to consume," Nizar said. So he has decided to back out of the area and channel much-needed resources elsewhere.

The Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) noted that "generally, areas with a sizeable and older cluster of rental flats tend to be more well known, and thus better served by food support organisations".

The consequence? "This may lead to wastage in some cases, and some households remain underserved, especially those who do not live in rental flats," said an MSF spokesperson.

MP for Jalan Besar GRC Denise Phua has tried to "keep a tighter rein" to avoid duplication of services in her ward. But, "it is not always easy because some donors prefer to do what they want, and are not concerned about partnering with others to reach the unreached," she said.

Food support groups typically give out the same kinds of non-perishables with a long shelf-life. So, overserved beneficiaries end up with too much rice, instant noodles, biscuits, and canned sardines and baked beans.

"You can tell when one household is being served by three, four groups," said Li Woon Churdboonchart, founder of social enterprise Volunteer Switchboard which runs Project Home Sweet Home.

Its volunteers, who deliver food rations every month to the elderly poor at Jalan Kukoh, make it a point to go through the packs with them. "We will take out every single item and ask, would you eat this? If you don't, we'll take it back," she said. The seniors even pass them surfeit items given by other groups.

The frequency at which rations are distributed is a problem.

Every Wednesday Aunty Loh, 88, must pick up two heavy plastic bags of rations that she signed up to receive from a temple.

It's too much for her, but she claims she has no choice. "If one week you don't come and pick up, they will strike your name off. They won't give you the next week," she said in Mandarin.

When CNA Insider visited her one-room rental flat with volunteer group Keeping Hope Alive (KHA), there were at least 10 bags of rations sitting untouched. Several packets of rice and bee hoon had become infested with bugs, while a tin of something that had leaked was crawling with maggots.

The food-giving usually intensifies around periods like National Day or Chinese New Year, when ad hoc groups show up to help. And so, the elderly residents "accumulate more and more", said Fion Phua, 50, KHA's founder.

"They think that so long as something is not opened, it still can be eaten, never mind the expiry date."

Her volunteers visit a different rental block every Sunday, and help the residents to clean their flats and clear unwanted items. The bulk of Aunty Loh's food donations had to be thrown away because they had spoiled or long expired.
THE OTHER EXTREME: LITTLE TO NO AID
Sometimes, the 88-year-old said, she passes the food to her neighbour. "Her husband is in jail and she has one child. It's tough and she has to work."

Just two floors down from Aunty Loh, an eight-year-old girl was going without lunch, and was drinking water to feel full. It's a stark representation of how, even in the same block, one can find both the overserved and the underserved.

When CNA Insider first met Katie*, she, her grandaunt and her dad were struggling without regular food assistance, while most of their money went to paying off debts. They had a simple dinner at night. "It's not like we're super-hungry," Katie said.

Typically, the food charities work with case referrals by the family service centres (FSCs), RCs, senior activity centres and community centres. But the family didn't seem to be on any group's radar.

Their plight came to Fion's attention only because she chanced upon Katie along the corridor. The family has since been getting help from Keeping Hope Alive, including with groceries and regular meals.

Then, there are cases like Serene Loh, who finds the typical bag of rations - while more than enough for an elderly person - to be far too little for her family of six.

"We used to receive food rations from the FSC every two weeks. but we can finish them in a day," she said. "My kids are still growing so they will eat a lot."

That could be one reason why a few of those receiving frequent food aid - once a week or fortnight - still reported being severely food insecure, in the Lien study. That is to say, they went without eating for a whole day, or couldn't afford to eat when hungry.
THE HIDDEN PROBLEM
Serene feels that the seniors living in her rental block get significantly more from the volunteer groups that come by. "It's not fair that only the elderly get so much help," she said.

Others fall off the radar by a twist of geographical fate.

Take the Chin Swee area, said KHA's Fion. "People only see blocks 51 and 52 because these are the rental flats with a majority of old people.

"But just behind Chin Swee is Jalan Minyak, blocks 4, 5 and 6. You don't see many elderly folks there because there's a mix of families with children as well. So, if you focus only on serving the elderly, you wouldn't enter that area."

When CNA Insider spoke to several residents at Jalan Minyak, we were told that a food charity used to serve the area every week until they stopped three months ago, for reasons unknown.

"They would send one or two vans every Tuesday. Sometimes we'd get fresh groceries, sometimes rations," said a resident in his 40s. "Whoever wanted could just come and take."

Other groups had also offered food assistance occasionally, but have not been seen lately, said a resident.

Over at Holland Village, behind the bustle of its bars and chic cafes, is a single block of rental flats at Holland Close. "People don't see it because the focus is always on big estates," Fion said.

"Plus, this kind of flats are not near the MRT station." This makes it more inconvenient for volunteers to lug large quantities of rations.

In that block, 500m from folks sipping artisan iced lattes, KHA and CNA Insider found Ahmad, his wife and their five children in a one-room flat. Their youngest child, born four months ago, was fast asleep on a dirty, sunken mattress.

Providing for her diapers and milk powder on Ahmad's earnings of S$650 as a part-time cleaner means they have that much less for food. They get monthly rations from a charity - but it's all consumed well before the month is up. So when Fion and her volunteers came by with hot vegetarian porridge donated by a hotel, Ahmad asked for six servings.
'GHOSTING' AID
Families like his are why the KHA volunteers visit a new area every two to three weeks. "To be honest, if you ask me where you can find people in need, just open up to any location on the Singapore map," said Fion.

Despite the sheer number of food support groups on paper, in reality, many of these efforts to help can be irregular.

That's why Volunteer Switchboard has been focusing on the low-income neighbourhood of Jalan Kukoh for six years, even though, on the surface, it seems like "everybody wants to help there".

"A lot of people ask me, Jalan Kukoh is overserved, why are you still there?" said Li Woon. In response, she points to how she has seen well-intentioned efforts peter out. "One group was there to give bread, so we didn't include bread in our ration packs.

"Then suddenly, one day, we realised they were gone."

Not every group has the ability to function as a full-fledged food charity, noted Nichol Ng, the co-founder of The Food Bank Singapore, which collects excess food from companies or individuals and channels these to the needy through community partners.

"Under the National Council of Social Service umbrella, there are over 2,000 members and many of them have some kind of food programme," she said. "But not many have a living, breathing food distribution effort that spans 365 days a year."

Food From The Heart (FFTH) is one of those that do have a sustained programme. The 16-year-old charity is pledged to "alleviating hunger through efficient distribution of food", in the form of food packs that currently feed 3,600 families - some, who have been beneficiaries for many years.
WHEN FOOD BRINGS MORE (HEALTH) PROBLEMS
Said CEO Sim Bee Hia: "It's a sustained effort, not something where you collect food this month and then the next month you won't have. That's the worst thing you can do to them."

The frequency and even spread of food assistance aside, another issue is that of quality of donations, and whether these match the beneficiary's needs - especially when it comes to their health.

Under the Meals-on-Wheels programme - funded by the Agency for Integrated Care, to provide homebound individuals with meal deliveries at a subsidised rate - service providers must cater, upon request, to clients' special requirements such as meals for diabetics or soft diets.

But this aside, there is little to dictate what other food assistance groups should give. Take Aunty Loh, the 88-year-old inundated with food donations, who should not be eating some of the rations she is given.

"I have diabetes," she said as she injected herself with an insulin pen, then threw the used needle into the trash with the syrup-heavy canned longans thst Fion's KHA volunteers had discarded.

Aunty Loh also has high blood pressure and high cholesterol, and takes more than 20 pills a day to keep her ailments under control.

Holding up a can of fried dace fish with black beans, Fion sighed: "This is deep fried, it's salty, it's preserved. Aunty already has the three 'highs'. Let me tell you frankly. If she eats all these, it is a slow suicide."

In April 2018, the Health Promotion Board (HPB) released guidelines for charities and donors to choose healthier products when providing food for beneficiaries.

But former academic Dr Jenson Goh, who looked at Singapore's food system as part of a course he once taught at NUS' Residential College 4, thinks it's insufficient considering the "complex" nutritional needs of the food insecure. "The guidelines are a broad stroke, but there are very different, unique individual needs. The approach has to be personalised," he said.

Others note that despite the guidelines, the standard "starter pack" of food rations contains items that don't actually improve food security - which refers to not just access to food, but specifically to nutritious food.

"Instant noodles are high in saturated fat and sodium, which may lead to higher risks of heart disease and stroke," said Goh Yiting, senior dietitian at Tan Tock Seng Hospital. "Such food may be loaded with calories, but aren't high in nutrients like vitamins."

Retiree Esther Lim is conscious of managing her diabetes and high blood pressure, and would prefer to cook her own healthier meals. But the 58-year-old - who stopped working because of leg pain and can't walk far - was disheartened by the kind of rations she had to make do with.

Couldn't the food donations include fresh vegetables and fresh meat? She wished.
OTHER MISMATCHES
But giving out healthier options, like brown rice instead of white, might not go down well with everyone. FFTH's Bee Hia noted: "Change is disruptive, especially for old folks."

Food handouts can also fail to match needs in other crucial ways.

Fion recalls meeting an elderly Malay woman who was taking care of three primary school-age grandsons, and - on top of that - battling stage 3 cancer. "There was no household income because both parents were in jail, so the family relied on charity food items," she said.

They got regular packed meals, but the food wasn't halal. "So, they would put the ingredients aside and eat only the white rice."

Then, there are beneficiaries' physical limitations. Esther, for example, struggles to open tins of Milo because of the stiffness and pain in her hands. "I end up not using it," she said. Sachet-form drink mixes would serve her better.

On one visit to Uncle Ho, CNA Insider came across a delivery of fresh carrots and sweet potatoes from one charity. There was also a large bottle of olive oil.

Healthier alternatives, for sure - but unfortunately, they were useless to Uncle Ho as he had no stove or equipment to cook them with. "I don't know what to do with them," he said helplessly.

As for the cooked food he receives, dietitian Goh Yiting looked at a log of several days' meals that CNA Insider presented her, and found them to tick the nutritional boxes in terms of vegetable servings and proteins.

But, Uncle Ho sometimes gets fried food items or meat that hasn't been minced, which is tough for him to chew. "Just slowly eat lor," he said. Softer foods or porridge would be ideal for him.

To better match beneficiaries' needs, Dr Jenson Goh said, feedback channels need to be open. "But because groups often just leave the food at the door, the beneficiaries don't tell anyone that they are overserved."

Others might be apprehensive about giving feedback for fear of being misinterpreted, said Fion. "If they say 'I don't eat macaroni', for example, people might call you ungrateful. Like, 'I give you and you still want to choose'."
DONORS NEED TO GIVE BETTER
Esther, who got a similar response when she tried to give feedback on the "bland" cooked meals by a charity kitchen, said: "We can't give feedback because the food is free... It feels like we are beggars, what they give, we must eat."

But it may not be entirely up to food charities, either. Often what determines what they can give out, are the donations they receive from the public and from companies.

Said Food Bank's Nichol: "While charities want to feed their beneficiaries better, they won't be able to do so if they are consistently getting unhealthy donated food. It's therefore up to groups to communicate to their donors which items are more or less useful."

Food From The Heart holds nearly 300 food donation drives a year for its Community Food Pack programme. Said Bee Hia: "If you give us a lot of luncheon meat, I can only give it to Chinese families. If you give us 3-in-1 Milo and coffee, I cannot give to people with diabetes."

"People might want to give 'fancy' items like macaroni and cheese. But I can't give that to seniors, they won't know how to consume it!" she added.

She also emphasised that they cannot accept expired canned food. "We are not a dumpster, but sad to say, some donors treat us as a way to clear whatever they have at home." The Food Bank also has received opened bottles and half-finished food items.

Charity kitchen Willing Hearts, which cooks up 6,500 free meals daily for collection or delivery, sometimes gets complaints about the lack of variety. But - aside from the fact that options are limited as it doesn't use pork or beef out of cultural considerations - it relies on donated ingredients.

Its president Teh Eng Hua, 63, said: "Whatever people give, we use. If it's flooding season in Malaysia, we won't get so much green vegetables. So we'll be eating Chinese cabbage for many days. But there's still Chinese cabbage to eat, right?"

He thinks beneficiaries should remember that the food comes from the goodwill and "hard work" of many donors and volunteers. "Plus, it's delivered to your doors. So we must all be thankful."

However, with standards of living having risen in Singapore, Nichol thinks there's room to improve on the range of food given to the needy, as "we can't be giving the same types as 20 years ago".

Giving beneficiaries more choice can be a double-edged sword, though, in Nizar's experience. The FFA founder said candidly: "You get some entitlement issues... They will ask, why are the oranges this brand? Not Sunkist?"

"When I started to give milk and cheese - things the beneficiaries would not be able to afford - they started asking for better brands... if it's not Nestle or a premium brand, they wouldn't want."

Donating cash instead to food charities is not a bad option - the groups, after all, can buy groceries that would meet their beneficiaries' needs.

However, groups do feel the obligation to stretch the donor's dollar by buying in bulk, or larger portions that are more value for dollar. Hence, why food packs are often standardised with little room for customisation; and why there's often wasted food.
MEAL DELIVERY HICCUPS
"When I first started doing charity work, I wanted to give 10kg bags of rice because why not?," said FFTH's Bee Hia. "But I didn't realise that a senior living alone is going to take a very long time to finish that much rice."

Charity kitchens face an additional set of issues: Finding the volunteers to get cooked meals delivered every day, on time; and avoiding food spoilage.

Willing Hearts starts preparing the meals as early as 6.30am, which are then delivered across the island from 9.30am to 11.30am by some 30 to 40 volunteers.

Guidelines by the Singapore Food Agency states that cooked food should be consumed, refrigerated or frozen within two hours, but sometimes beneficiaries keep a pack until dinner time without a fridge to store it in. KHA's Fion noted that it was "quite common" for them to find that their food had gone soggy or turned sour.

Said Willing Heart's Eng Hua: "Occasionally we hear that people do not know how to store or heat up the food properly. If it was possible to recruit more volunteers or partners, we could serve dinner in the afternoon. But for now, this is the best we can do."

Even the Meal-on-Wheels programme relies largely on volunteers.

TOUCH Home Care, for instance, delivers lunch by 12.30pm and dinner by 6.30pm to some 1,000 frail elderly in Toa Payoh, Ang Mo Kio and Jurong. But, on rare occasions, meeting that schedule is a challenge.

"Some volunteers would back out last minute or come too late - the meals would be close to expiration," said Sam Ngeow, centre manager for TOUCH Home Care. "They need to be consumed within four hours of cooking. I can't let them be delivered."

That's why TOUCH also gives its clients food rations every two months, so they don't go hungry in such a situation.

Recently, one possible solution presented itself: A tie-up with Deliveroo, to deliver meals to TOUCH's beneficiaries.

"Delivering food is what we do best... (And) we already have a steady core of riders that TOUCH can use," said general manager Siddharth Shanker. Deliveroo also, for one month, got customers on its app to contribute a S$5-meal, raising some 1,000 meals that were delivered to 155 beneficiaries.

For folks who are ambulant, there is other generous help available that doesn't rely on delivery services. Many grassroots and non-profit groups give out vouchers that can be redeemed at neighbourhood coffeeshops or hawker stalls.

Some F&B outlets, from restaurants to fast-food, have even stepped up to offer free meals to those in need. Others, like cafes and food courts, have pay-it-forward initiatives that (much like Deliveroo's) rallies customers to pay for someone else's meal.
SEARCHING FOR A BETTER WAY FORWARD
But pride, and the stigma of being seen as needing charity, can stop some from coming forward - an issue Bee Hia has noted when some parents decline to let their children collect FFTH's goodie bags at school, for fear of how their classmates might view them.

For all the challenges that food assistance groups face, the good news is that a number have already set the wheels of change in motion, in ways both small and big.

Firstly, by doing what they already do, better.

FFTH, for example, now tailors its Community Food Packs: A larger quantity of items for young families, for instance. Food packs curated for diabetics and for dialysis patients (in consultation with a dietitian), featuring non-fried instant noodles, or vegetables with low-to-medium potassium levels such as french beans and cucumbers.

Esther, too, has started to get more choices from her food rations provider, in the months since CNA Insider first met her. She is now given a list to choose from, which includes frozen protein such as sausages and nuggets, with a cap of S$50 in value.

"This is better than canned food, even though it is fried," she said.

FFTH has gone even one better by opening, in February, The Community Shop @ Mountbatten. There, 500 needy households can choose what they want for free - instead of having to accept pre-packed rations.

The charity is at the same time collecting data of their preferences, which will help to shape smarter donations.

MP Denise Phua has done something similar in the Kampong Glam precinct: A mini-mart where Comcare recipients can help themselves to donated food and groceries. "It's important to match the needs of the recipients with what is given," she said.

Indeed, for food groups to give better, the public needs to be educated, Bee Hia says.

"We're hoping that people would change their mindsets and think from the perspective of the beneficiary," she said. "Say, there's a food drive in your child's school, what do you do? Do you open your pantry and take out what your child doesn't want to eat anymore?
INNOVATING TO FEED THE HUNGRY
"Or, do you take out items that you know your child enjoys, and think another child would enjoy too?"

Others aren't waiting for a mindset change to happen, but are finding new ways to serve their clientele, with some creative thinking. Like FFA's Nizar.

After six years of distributing food rations and cooked meals to low-income families, he believes he's come up with a solution that will address most problems. He has turned combat rations-type MREs (meals ready to eat) into easy meals for the food insecure - only, of tastier variety.

Think buttermilk prawns, seafood fried rice and biryani: Meals more complete in nutrition than instant noodles, and quicker to prepare.

FFA produces the MREs with a shorter two-year shelf life, so that the food can be cooked in tastier ways, said Nizar. The bright-yellow retort pouches can be reheated in a microwave, but meals are also safe to consume without reheating.

"It's especially viable for the elderly, those who can't cook for themselves or are non-ambulant," said Nizar.

What's more, he said, the cost of producing these is cheaper than the cost of preparing and transporting freshly cooked meals which run the risk of spoiling. One box of 36 meals could feed an individual for weeks.

"We have to innovate, we have to adapt. Instead of going to someone's house daily, you can bring them a box just once a month," he said.

Then there is Food Bank's food pantry, which has been reimagined as convenient 24-hour vending machines providing emergency rations and meals to beneficiaries in Toa Payoh. Given cash cards topped up with 50 credits, they can 'buy' 25 items a month.

Said Nichol: "Let's say you really need bread, you can just tap your card to redeem; Nutella and peanut butter is free." The aim here is to make food more accessible any time they need it - while empowering the beneficiaries with choice.
TAPPING FOOD WASTE TO SOLVE HUNGER
And if the vending machines idea works, Food Bank plans to introduce blast-frozen food as one of the offerings. "This brings food waste reduction to the next level. With this mode of preparation, you can give salvaged food like vegetables an extended shelf life of three to six months," Nichol said.

Meanwhile, SG Food Rescue (SGFR) - which collects unsellable fresh produce from suppliers at Pasir Panjang Wholesale Centre and other places - has been redistributing this excess to partners like FFA, welfare homes and charities. It has also been stocking free-for-all community fridges, which are open 24/7 at seven locations.

While the group's primary focus is tackling food waste, SGFR founder Daniel Tay says, helping the food insecure is one way to do that. "We collect lots of food and we need people to eat it.

"Vegetables and fruits are definitely more nutritious than instant noodles. It's about giving people better options," he said.

Tapping the tonnes of food waste to feed the food insecure is an idea that is gathering momentum in Singapore - though it is not without its challenges.

Crucially, most charities and groups lack the chilled storage facilities to keep vegetables and fruits fresh until they can be given to the needy; and lack the manpower or resources to process and distribute these perishables fast enough.

Said Daniel: "We're doing this purely on a voluntary basis. If other government bodies and businesses step up to help fund this, we can do so much more."

Similarly, FFTH's Bread Run programme could do with more help to pick up leftover bread from more than 100 partner bakeries and hotels, and bring it to collection points for beneficiaries.

"We have bakeries who want to come on board, and we need more volunteers," said Bee Hia.

And soon, there could be even greater need for logistical help.

The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) is exploring the possibility of Good Samaritan laws to provide some legal protection against liability for those who render assistance - such as hotels or restaurants that donate surplus food.

It could be a gamechanger. Food Bank's Nichol said: "We can then encourage donors to give without fear of being sued. It would increase the range and volume of food we'd receive."

On the downside, she said, some suppliers might then be tempted to use food charities as a "dumping ground" to avoid paying for incineration costs. Much care would also have to be taken to ensure that cooked food donations are safely handled.

Said a spokesperson for the Ministry of Environment and Water Resources (MEWR): "In considering the feasibility of such laws, there is a need to strike a balance between facilitating food donation, and ensuring that food donors and distributors exercise due care and practise good hygiene when distributing donated food."

Still, in the broader scheme of things, economist Walter Theseira questions whether re-channelling food waste and relying on volunteer power are the best ways to tackle food insecurity.

"It sends the implicit signal that if you're low income, you only 'deserve expired food'. I think it's more dignified to have money to make the choice (of what to eat) yourself," said the Nominated MP and associate professor at the Singapore University of Social Sciences.

"Efforts to distribute food that is unwanted or going to expire are driven by volunteers who mean well. But many of these organisations also limit their activities to a few times a month because the reality is, they can't find enough volunteers to reliably do it day after day," he added.

"The universality of volunteer efforts is a big problem... What if you've found an area without a volunteer group? Do you set up one there, which is difficult because by definition, volunteers organise themselves organically?
A NEED FOR TRUST - AND A MAP
"That's why I think there is unfortunately no substitute for some kind of coordinated action and government-led effort. It's not to denigrate the role of volunteers - but if we have a systemic problem with food insecurity among low-income individuals, it's a problem the government is best equipped to tackle."

In 2018, officers from the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) began informally engaging several food support organisations.

It led to the establishment of a multi-agency workgroup in 2019, involving groups like Food Bank, FFA, FFTH, Willing Hearts and SGFR; and agencies such as MEWR, HPB and SFA. The idea is to provide a platform for stakeholders to collaborate on tackling food waste and food insecurity.

More communication could certainly help to tackle food aid duplication and reach more of those in need, the charities felt.

"The first thing they should be looking at is big data," said Food Bank's Nichol. "We know that people need help, but where are they? Who are they? This information can only be gotten from the government."

MSF says its role in the workgroup, apart from facilitating, would include bringing in other government agencies and "pulling together data where relevant".

However, getting groups to share information with each other - such as which households each is serving - would be a challenge.

"It's sensitive data," said Jenson Goh, who serves as a facilitator with the workgroup. "Between the food group and the beneficiary, there is already trust built. The food insecure often face complex problems, so groups feel the need to be more careful (about their clients' privacy)."

Nichol nonetheless believes it is important to put together a map that shows the precise locations each group's programmes are serving. "I don't think we should overlap each other's territories. Let's say if you're already covering this area's 1,000 households, maybe some of us should be hands off," she said.

But is obtaining such cooperation easier said than done?

"We have heard stories from our beneficiaries that another charity organisation came knocking on their doors and asked them, 'Can you not take the rations from Volunteer Switchboard? Can you sign up with my group?'" said Li Woon.

This sort of thing happens she says, because groups must reach certain beneficiary numbers in order to receive grants to run their programme. (One example is the Do-Good Grant by Central Singapore Community Development Council, which can cover up to S$10,000 or 80 per cent of the project start-up costs.)

FFA's Nizar admits that competition is unavoidable. "As charities, we are always vying for eyeballs because that's how we get donations coming in. I think people are afraid that 'if I were to do something collectively (with others), it would dilute my ability to get funding'," he said.
FINDING COMMON GROUND
Added Nichol: "So a lot of people guard their turf very closely - and especially guard the donors."

Within the workgroup, there are also philosophical differences, Jenson noted. "For example, for SGFR the primary philosophy is that (food rescue) volunteers have first pick of the food waste. But groups whose philosophy is to feed the food insecure might think that that's self-serving."

Yet, he thinks the workgroup has made headway in coordinating efforts. For instance, the stakeholders have compiled a list of sources, such as restaurants and distribution centres, willing to contribute unwanted food.

"We've also mapped the food groups and their needs - so we are trying to cross-match to deconflict people who are sourcing from the same food sources."

One project in the works involves providing distributors at Pasir Panjang Wholesale Centre with a collection schedule for the various food rescue groups. A systematic approach and clearer communication to distributors, as well as between groups, could lead to more food being available to all, said Jenson.

Said an MSF spokesperson: "We are encouraged that members are open to working together to improve the charity food landscape, and look forward to deepening this collaboration."

While it might take a while to break down silos in Singapore's food charity landscape, Nichol is hopeful that groups can find common ground.
This is the second of CNA Insider's two-parter on food insecurity. In Part 1: Why in a food paradise, some Singaporeans are still going hungry. HOW YOU CAN CONTRIBUTE
"We're all in the business of helping others, so let's do this business better - a team of charities bonding over the love of food and over the love of feeding other people," she said.

Free Food For All: https://freefood.org.sg

Food From The Heart: https://www.foodfromtheheart.sg

Food Bank Singapore: https://www.giving.sg/the-food-bank-singapore-ltd

Willing Hearts: http://www.willinghearts.org.sg

SG United: Various charity efforts amid the COVID-19 outbreak https://www.giving.sg/sgunited

TOUCH Community Services: To volunteer for Meals-on-Wheels delivery, call 68046565

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Pulling together in creative ways, to better feed food insecure Singaporeans

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
There are over a hundred food assistance groups helping the needy. But why are good intentions sometimes falling short of meeting needs - and can groups overcome their differences to work together?

# data[].attributes.headline
CNA’s two-part special report (article + documentary) on food insecurity in Singapore

# data[].attributes.subject
CNA’s two-part special report (article + documentary) on food insecurity in Singapore

# data[].attributes.body
Part 1:

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
*This story has been updated to reflect clarifications from the Ministry of Social And Family Development (MSF) to provide information on some of the profiles who are its current and past SSO clients.
SINGAPORE: Rice, hot water and salt to taste. Shanger Pannerchelvam remembers a time when these were the only ingredients his family could afford for dinner. He was only 12 years old.

His mother had to stop work as a cleaner at a condominium when artery disease affected her legs. One year later, his father fell into clinical depression and left his fast-food job. Just like that, the family had no breadwinner.

Like most adolescent boys, Shanger had a burgeoning appetite - which a small bowl of porridge was unable to satisfy. "I was full of anger as I ate. I'd think to myself, why must I eat this?" he recalled.

After dinner, he'd go to sleep. "There was nothing I could do about it. I slept so that I wouldn't feel any emotions."

That was his only meal of the day. In the morning, he'd go to school with an empty stomach, fighting hunger pangs through recess because he'd given his S$1 school meal voucher to his 8-year-old brother.

"He had his own coupon but it wasn't enough. He was always hungry also," said Shanger, now 22.

The family of four was given help with the bills, and food rations. But the latter wasn't enough. The brothers resorted to begging for money from strangers after school.

"We'd give the 'poor thing' face, say our Ez-link cards had no money and we couldn't get home," said Shanger.

"We would ask for a dollar each for transport. Then we'd use this to buy a plate of chicken rice to share."
HUNGER IN A FOOD SECURE NATION
A simple dish like chicken rice is also a luxury to 55-year-old Azhar Ibad. It's a S$2 meal he can afford to have only once a week.

The rest of the time, it's instant noodles for the cleaning supervisor, who has been unable to work for a year due to growing weakness in his limbs that doctors suspect might be Parkinson's disease.

While he waits for his ComCare assistance to be renewed, his kitchen cabinet is filled with packets of Maggi, cereal and Milo. "If I feel my stomach full, okay already. No choice," he said. "I eat this to survive."

In a food paradise like Singapore, where cheap eats abound around almost every street corner, why are instant noodles a staple and emblem of resignation for some?

What makes putting food on the table a struggle for them, in a nation ranked No 1 on The Economist Intelligence Unit's Global Food Security Index in December 2019?

Nor is Singapore short of safety nets for those in need: From Government schemes such as ComCare and the Silver Support Scheme, to the efforts of a plethora of social service agencies, charities, religious organisations, grassroots groups, and community do-gooders.

So why, then, do some fall through the cracks? And who are they?

As CNA Insider discovered - after tracking vulnerable families and individuals over months, and speaking to researchers and assistance groups - those who experience food insecurity are a surprisingly diverse group: One that can't be defined by housing type, family size, age, or income group alone.
WATCH: Hunger in Singapore - the documentary, part 1 (20:08)

BEYOND THE ELDERLY POOR
The elderly poor often spring first to mind as an at-risk group - and not just for the lack of savings or income.

Particularly for those who live alone, sickness, limited mobility and frailty pose a mammoth challenge to the simple act of cooking for themselves. "Some, because of physical or mental health, aren't able to go downstairs and get food, even if it's just a short distance from home," said Sam Ngeow, centre manager of TOUCH Home Care.

Fion Phua, the founder of volunteer group Keeping Hope Alive, recalls in June last year finding a famished 79-year-old man lying on the floor of his one-room flat in Marsiling, too weak to move.

The man - a former security guard who had not been working since April after being injured in a fall - had not eaten in three days, she said. "We had to send him to the hospital."

But, the elderly poor are also high on the list of vulnerable groups that receive attention.

Not only has the Pioneer Generation package made a "real and important difference" in recent years, say many observers, the elderly are also the target of numerous social service agencies, volunteers and NGOs.

The resulting irony is, such seniors can end up over-served by multiple well-meaning groups. Indeed, most of the elderly poor whom CNA Insider encountered in various neighbourhoods were receiving food rations or free meals.

Sometimes I see my friends staying in rental flats, they seem happier. They get more assistance.

The family is currently getting dry food rations from their Family Service Centre.

While the majority of food-insecure participants in the Lien Centre study did live in one- and two-room flats, 40 per cent live in three-room flats or bigger. Food assistance groups say that, while rare, they've even encountered those living in condominiums or landed property who needed their aid.

But many of them might be just one retrenchment or one serious illness away from a tight financial situation.

FEEDING MORE MOUTHS
For low-income families, the food situation can also get precarious with each new member.

Member of Parliament (MP) Lee Bee Wah, for one, sees more families than elderly residents coming to seek help at her Meet-The-People sessions in Nee Soon South.

These families, who are often already receiving assistance like Workfare, "face difficulty in getting three meals a day especially with the addition of a newborn," she said. "They need to buy more milk powder and diapers, which means less money to put food on the table."

Then, there are the unforeseen medical expenses and costs of transport to go see a doctor when the child falls sick. "These things can be a burden, especially when their income is not stable and when they are daily-rated workers," said the MP.

Food Bank's Nichol receives a number of desperate emails from young families. She recalls one in particular. "A single father with seven children got retrenched.

He wrote, 'My children have not eaten for three days. Can you please bring food?'

Ansar gets by on one meal a day, chugging water to feel full. The children meanwhile get chicken nuggets, fries, bread and spreads. They receive food support from Food From The Heart, but when desperate, Ansar also turns to groups on Facebook where members donate milk powder or diapers to families in need.

SMU's John Donaldson however, dismisses the stereotype that having many children is what keeps families in food insecurity.

"Often it's people with two or three children, or who have elderly frail parents," he said. In fact, families who are working hard yet still struggle to put food on the table are "much more common" among the food-insecure, than those with a large brood.
THE SINGLE-PARENT STRUGGLE
Even so, many low-income families seem to get along fine in terms of meals, with careful management of their expenses - until they lose a breadwinner.

More than half of the moderately-to-severely food insecure individuals in the Lien Centre study were from families headed by single, divorced or widowed parents.

Three years ago, Sam* was embroiled in an emotionally tumultuous divorce. "I suddenly had to take care of my daughter alone," said the 38-year-old. "I was very stressed, but I kept quiet and tried to cope by myself."

It affected his concentration at work as a security guard. For a couple of months, he couldn't report for work. So he borrowed money. The debt repayments snowballed. Before he knew it, there was simply not enough money to feed his daughter and his sister who stays with them.

Then there is Norashikin Mohd, 36, who was a housewife until her husband was jailed for several months. Then she had to start working as a school cleaner for S$600 a month, half of what her husband had made as a canteen stall operator.

"It was quite overwhelming," the mother of four kids, aged 7 to 14, said in Malay. "I was worried that when the kids return from school, there's no one to take care of them."

Norashikin tried to cook each day before leaving for work - a meal, usually of rice and just one dish, to be shared by all over both lunch and dinner. As the Lien Centre study noted, food insecurity isn't just caused by cash constraints, but also time constraints which leave little opportunity for shopping or cooking.

Since her husband's release recently, the couple have been working at his canteen stall and they bring home the cooked food leftovers for dinner. Whether it's enough or not, the family of six have grown used to making do.
THE CASE OF THE HUNGRY 8-YEAR-OLD
Learning to 'make do' is what many of the food insecure do out of resignation, and not knowing where to turn for help or not qualifying for it.

One afternoon last September, Fion from Keeping Hope Alive was visiting some elderly residents at a block of rental flats, when an 8-year-old girl came barreling down the corridor.

"She was in her school uniform, her hair was messy," Fion recalled. She had some custard buns left over from lunch, which she offered the girl.

"Her reply was, 'How did you know I am starving?' Her earnestness really caught my attention."

The girl, Katie*, lived in a one-room rental flat which was filthy and, in Fion's view, not a suitable living environment for a child. She had bugs in her hair and no clothes other than the school uniform she was wearing.

Fion wondered, where were her parents?

The good thing is that during the school term, Katie, who is on financial assistance, gets one meal a day taken care of under the School Meals Programme. Dinner at home usually consists of rice and one dish cooked by her 56-year-old aunt.

When asked if she got hungry, Katie paused for a long time before saying in Mandarin: "It's not like we're super hungry. Aunty and I just go hungry together. Or I'll just drink water."

THE LIFELONG IMPACT OF HUNGER
But hunger isn't just an ache to put up with for the day - or week, or months.

That's because the effects of food insecurity can last a lifetime, even well after life circumstances improve.

When Shanger entered polytechnic, he started to get paid for his internship and for distributing flyers, while his younger brother had his National Service allowance. So regular meals became a thing again for his family.

Shanger no longer eats salted rice for his one meal of the day - quite the other extreme, in fact.

He now eats up to five meals a day, typically consisting of fried rice, chicken rice and fast food - all the food he never got to enjoy as a child.

"The past impacted me a lot because now that I'm able to do what I want, I just can't let go," he said. "I probably will get another illness, from eating too much.

But I told my doctor off; I don't care, because I can finally eat.

The cost of food insecurity is not just borne by individuals, but in the long run, by the country as well in the form of increased public healthcare spending.

A study by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention has linked food insecurity to higher healthcare expenditures across the US, due to the higher rates of associated chronic illnesses like diabetes, heart disease, kidney disease and depression.

The study's co-author estimates that food insecurity costs the US health system an additional US$53 billion a year.
HUNGER AND THE CYCLE OF POVERTY
Health problems aside, food insecurity exacts another grave cost on low-income families - it could exacerbate the struggle to break out of the poverty cycle.

A child who experiences hunger might fall sick more often, take longer to recover from illness, and suffer from poorer concentration in school, noted Goh Yiting, a senior dietitian at Tan Tock Seng Hospital.

The implications of all this - the inability to focus, more missed days of school - makes it much harder for the child to keep up with school work.

A 2017 US study showed that children who experienced food insecurity in their first five years of life were more likely to be lagging behind in social, emotional and, to some degree, cognitive skills when they began kindergarten. Other research has shown that if children enter kindergarten lagging behind their peers, they tend to stay lagging.

Indeed, The Food Bank's Nichol shared her experience of providing food to a primary school that ran a daily breakfast programme for students from low-income families.

By simply providing a well-balanced meal in the morning, the school saw a drastic improvement in the attendance rate, she said.

"I would like young children to eat better so that they can study and focus better. If they can do that, they really have an opportunity to break out from the poverty cycle," she said.

As for food insecure adults, it's been posited that when resources are scarce, it can affect the ability to make decisions or see the bigger picture.

Attention is focused on immediate needs, like what food to put on the table, while the stress of having to worry about this day after day can reduce bandwidth for long-term planning.

Serene Loh, 39, can certainly identify with this.

PROBLEMS WITH ASSISTANCE
But does every family in need find assistance easy to get?

First of all, "we often assume that individuals or families will come forward for help," said SUSS' Walter Theseira. "The reality is that many households either don't know about the welfare schemes, so they won't come forward; or they may feel embarrassed about identifying themselves, because of the stigma associated with seeking help."

Several families brought up the hassle of applying for aid at the SSO or bigger welfare organisations. They spoke with frustration of the need to need to fill up multiple forms, and to apply for renewal of assistance every few months with the re-submission of documentation.

"Many people feel that if they have to repeat their story over and over again for the amount of money that they're receiving, it simply isn't worth it," said SMU's John Donaldson.

That has been Serene's experience. Since the first she spoke to CNA Insider, she has secured ComCare assistance through the SSO. But the process, she said, was "very troublesome".

"The officer told me I need to print my CPF statement, but my printer at home has no ink already," she said. "I already don't have enough money to buy food, how to buy printer ink?" (MSF has since clarified that she was not required to submit a hard-copy statement at any point, as her CPF information had been obtained via the SSO's backend screening.)

But nor has Serene renewed her food rations assistance from the family service centre, as she found the need to resubmit documents a hassle.

MANY HELPING HANDS
That's not all.

In her Nee Soon South ward, the charity Food From The Heart works with her grassroots team to distribute donated bread and groceries; the Lion's Club delivers fresh vegetables and fish; while the Indian Muslim Social Service Association helps with groceries for Muslim households.

There's also a community fridge that Singapore Food Rescue (and resident gardeners) helps to stock.

At Kampong Glam every day, elderly rental-flat residents and other beneficiaries are served free lunch at a new food hub built for them - a collaboration between MP Denise Phua, PeaceConnect Senior Activity Centre, and Willing Hearts. Nutritious all-day breakfasts could soon follow.

Across Singapore, efforts like these are replicated with many groups stepping up to help - and they have made a definite impact in recent years.

There are some 125 food support organisations with an online presence, according to the Lien Centre study, and they range from non-profits and Institutions of a Public Character (IPC), soup kitchens and Meals-On-Wheels providers, to informal ground-up groups.

Started 16 years ago, Food From The Heart for example works with residents' committees, senior activity centres and family service centres - people "on the ground who know who needs help," said Bee Hia.

"We have grown because there's a need - more people are requesting for food," she added.

While it's not clear how many of the 125 groups are actually active or regular in their outreach, they help fill the gaps that the Government's social support network cannot cover. This is in line with MSF's "many helping hands" approach.

"The Government can't do everything for everyone," said former academic Jenson Goh, who as part of a course he once taught at NUS' Residential College 4, had looked at Singapore's food system.

"It looks out for those living with the bare minimum, those really living day to day. For people who fall through the cracks, the NGOs on the ground try to serve them."

These folks include Azhar, who while waiting for his application for assistance to be processed, has been receiving food support from Free Food For All.

And father of one, Sam, had a huge weight lifted off his shoulders when Fion and her volunteers at Keeping Hope Alive helped pay off his debts.

"We helped him so that he can focus his energy on taking care of his daughter and not be bogged down by repayments," Fion said.

They also gave his home a fresh coat of paint and new furniture, while the refrigerator - once stocked with half-eaten junk food - has been transformed into what Fion laughingly calls "a rich person's fridge".

The idea of a universal basic income is not without its detractors. There is, however, one other thing all agree on: Food insecurity is a problem that should concern Singapore as a society

"Ensuring no one goes hungry and has access to basic meals is fundamental," said MP Denise Phua. "There is much to do. And I don't believe there will ever be enough paid social workers to address the needs of a rapidly ageing society, and of those who may fall through the cracks because no one was alerted or who do not qualify due to technical reasons.

It will take a village to piece together a strong social safety net - each of us can play our part.

Said Theseira: "Singapore is a very rich and abundant society. And if you feel that you constantly have to make very constrained decisions, there's going to be a long-term effect on your ability to feel like a regular member of society."

"Food insecurity isn't just a problem of nutrition," he added. "It's also a problem of whether people psychologically feel like they're part of society, and whether they fit in."
Editor's note: An earlier version of the story stated that renewal of ComCare assistance can take an average of six weeks to process. This is incorrect. Most applications are processed within two to four weeks, and almost all within six weeks. In Part 2 of CNA Insider's special report: With so much food assistance out there, why are good intentions falling short?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Why in a cheap food paradise, some Singaporeans are still going hungry

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
A cleaner unable to work, a family with a 4-room flat, a single dad in debt - those experiencing food insecurity are more diverse than you think. Here's what they're going through, in the first of a 2-part special report.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
About one in 10 Singaporeans struggled to get sufficient, safe and nutritious food at least once in the last 12 months, a study has found.

Of this 10.4 per cent, two out of five households struggled to get such food at least once a month.

The study also found that these families were more likely to be living in one-or two-room Housing Board flats.

About 1,200 homes took part in the study, which was conducted between July and December last year by researchers from the Singapore Management University (SMU) Lien Centre for Social Innovation.

The aim of the study was to find out the prevalence, causes and consequences of what is called "food insecurity".

Commissioned by food charity Food Bank Singapore, the study was titled The Hunger Report: An In-depth Look At Food Insecurity In Singapore, and its findings were released yesterday.

SMU researchers conducted a similar study in 2018 but on a smaller scale, with 236 low-income families taking part.

The latest study - helmed by Dr Tania Nagpaul, Dr Dalvin Sidhu and Ms Jinwen Chen - found that the heads of food-insecure families tended to have lower educational qualifications, and were much less likely to have completed university.

It said: "This report reiterates that income is a persistent factor in food insecurity, with 79 per cent of the reasons cited for food insecurity being centred on financial constraints."

Other reasons included time constraints, restricted mobility, incarceration, spouse bereavement and family breakdown.

The study also found that only 22 per cent of food-insecure households were receiving food support at the time of the survey. About 62 per cent of food-insecure households did not seek food support.

The reasons cited included embarrassment, being unaware of available food support and the belief that others needed it more than them.

The study said: "There was significant disenchantment with food support, perhaps because food assistance cannot be a long-term solution to food insecurity if the root cause is income-related."

Another finding was that those who were food-insecure were more likely to be in the high-risk body mass index (BMI) category, and more likely to report negative emotions, indicating negative effects both physically and mentally.

The authors made several recommendations to address the issue because the percentage of households that are food-insecure cannot be overlooked, they said.

To boost food support, they suggested more strategic coordination in providing food support to families that need it. "Geographical mapping of areas where vulnerable households reside can aid in identifying food-insecure neighbourhoods and informing food aid organisations."

At the national level, there can be more strategic coordination of food support involving multi-sector partnerships between the Government, non-profit and private sectors, it added.

The report also suggested that more emphasis be placed on nutritious and healthy eating, as only 40 per cent of respondents had a healthy BMI, regardless of food security status. It also called for more information and education on food insecurity in Singapore, so that there is more empathy and awareness about the issue.

The study noted that some of its recommendations have already been addressed through the ongoing efforts of the Charity Food Workgroup, which was convened by the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) last year.

The workgroup comprises food charities, businesses and government agencies, and is meant to be a platform for the exchange of ideas and practices, and a means to forge partnerships.

An MSF spokesman, in a statement yesterday, said the ministry had worked with the researchers of the study to improve their methodology and obtain a more nationally representative survey sample.

"The report is a commendable effort that delves deeper into the state of food insecurity in Singapore, as we collectively press on to build a caring and inclusive society, and support those in our community with greater needs," she said.

She added that the workgroup is currently working on two initiatives to enable better coordination of food support. It is developing a database of food support recipients and also testing out local food support coordinators who will oversee the needs and support distribution for residents, starting with a few towns in Singapore.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
10% of Singaporeans struggle to get sufficient, safe, nutritious food: Study

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
About one in 10 Singaporeans struggled to get sufficient, safe and nutritious food at least once in the last 12 months, a study has found. Of this 10.4 per cent, two out of five households struggled to get such food at least once a month.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In a three-part series, CNA Insider hits the regional food trail - from the retail and distribution stages all the way to the farms - for a deeper look at why these food supply problems exist, and the efforts on the ground in places like Indonesia, India, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Singapore to fight food waste.

And as it turns out, consumers can also help to ensure that more food becomes available for all instead of being lost.
BUFFER STOCKS
On the surface, there seems to be little risk of supermarkets here running out of food - an assurance given even at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

And to make sure of that - for example when it comes to fresh chicken - supermarkets and other retailers tend to contractually bind their suppliers to bring in a 10 to 20 per cent buffer stock daily, just in case.

NOT EXPIRED, BUT NOT USED
Food also tends to go to waste when it has passed half of its shelf life, even if there are six months to a year left before expiry. This affects dry products and processed foods, for example.

"If these products ... aren't moved at the rate that we'd agreed upon or a rate that we thought would be optimal, then that results in products sitting out here in our warehouse with less than that required period," said Tan.

If the food is already on the shelves, retailers would typically return it, as consumers have a habit of buying food with the latest manufacturing date.

Chilled items, with a shorter shelf life, are particularly susceptible to wastage.

"We used to throw (away) 100 tubs of yoghurt ... about 50kg of yoghurt whenever we had issues with flight delays," said Hay Shiwei, the founder and director of food distributor Atasco, which focuses on supplying online grocers.

"I've had lots of products way past their best-before dates, and they're still very good for consumption," noted Hay.

So whenever there's wastage, I'd think, 'How am I going to use these products? In what way can I save them? Would anyone want them if I were to give them away?'

REACHING OUT TO CONSUMERS
The 38-year-old found the answers in June 2019 when he discovered Treatsure, a mobile platform connecting suppliers and businesses like hotels that have surplus food to everyday consumers.

"Where we come in is as a secondary channel for them (companies) to start selling items that they couldn't have (sold through) other channels," said Preston Wong, the 31-year-old chief executive and lead innovator at Treatsure.

"Consumers see whatever there is (put up by suppliers), then they go about ordering as you would on an e-commerce platform."

Four years since its first store opened, GreenPrice has four stores now helping nearly 700 suppliers to sell these goods, mainly to younger, eco-conscious and white-collar customers.
UNWANTED NO MORE
Over in Taiwan, social enterprise Goodwill Foods is helping farmers to minimise food waste by increasing the use of "off-grade products" as much as possible, said co-founder Lin Ya Wen.

Hou is one of these farmers who sell the so-called "ugly" fruits in their harvest to Goodwill Foods, which turns them into jams for sale.

"This kind of ponkan is very suitable for the processing industry," said Lin, explaining that the side of the orange more exposed to sunlight has less juice, which aids in the drying process.

"We tell the farmers directly that you just sell us the off-grade products that we need. Whatever price you want ... we'll accept."

TreeDots, Treatsure and GreenPrice are supported by DBS Foundation, while Goodwill Foods and The Food Bank Singapore are DBS community partners.
THE RIPPLE EFFECT
In the three years since TreeDots started, it has saved about 2,300 tonnes of food, or the equivalent of 23 million meals. Lim called this "a drop in the ocean" of food waste in Singapore.

"We're not even near to clearing what the market requires us to," he said, citing international estimates that 80 per cent of food waste comes from businesses.

He is "hopeful" about less food loss "because (he) can see the results of whatever we've done so far". But he also knows that changing consumers' perception is "not as easy as we thought".

For instance, there are new TreeDots customers who ask why their chicken looks yellowish or has blood or feathers, or why their codfish has bones. Nonetheless, he treats these complaints as a "good" thing.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
environment
      
    
  


  
      
            cna insider

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
When over 7 tonnes of chicken is discarded daily - the alarming scale of food waste in Asia

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Cities in Asia are losing all kinds of food. And most of this wastage happens even before consumers can make their purchases. In a three-part series, CNA Insider hits the food trail for a deeper look at the problem - and the champions tackling it.

# data[].attributes.body
Click on the '+' at the bottom right corner of this window - that will open up a 'box' where you can type and share links (:

# data[].attributes.headline
TWC2 (transient workers count too) articles on food issues  

# data[].attributes.subject
TWC2 (transient workers count too) articles on food issues  