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Jot the answer to the following

1. What can we/I do about it? What should we/I do about it?

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Jot the answer to the following

1. How does this affect me? How can I explore this further?

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Jot the answer to the following

1. What did I notice?

2. What are some things, people or places I observed during this journey?

3. What stood out to me or caught my attention?

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Singapore currently imports over 90% of the food we eat, and that means we are now dependent on other countries to feed us, making us vulnerable to supply and price disruption.

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Jot the answers to the following

1. What thoughts do you have during the learning journey?

2. What ideas or messages do I think this place or experience is trying to show?

3. How might different school subjects help me better understand what I saw?

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Learning Objectives

1.       Understand the economic aspects of sustainable agriculture, including factors affecting production costs and the role of innovation in the industry.

2.       Gain better understanding about food security and how urban farming in Singapore allow local production of food to meet 30% of our nutritional need. (30-by-30 plan)

3.       Explore the economic principles behind pricing, ethical food production, and the market for locally grown produce.

4.       Engage with experts at ComCrop Singapore to gain insights into the challenges and opportunities in urban agriculture and the sustainable food industry.

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ComCrop is Singapore’s first commercial rooftop urban farm. It uses vertical farming and hydroponics to grow leafy vegetables like basil and mint sustainably, right in the city.

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Urban farms like ComCrop support the government’s “30-by-30” goal — to locally produce 30% of our nutritional needs by 2030.

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Jot your answers to the questions below.

Pre-learning Journey : Let’s Anticipate & Explore

What do you know or wonder about the place/topic you will be exploring, and why might it be important to Singapore’s future?

During the Learning Journey :  Making Career connection

What are some of the interesting roles did you observe, and what skills or personal attributes are needed in those careers?

Post – Learning Journey : Reflect & Connect

What new insights did you gain about the people, systems, or challenges you saw?

What role might you be interested to play in contributing to this space in the future? List one practical step you can take toward this interest (e.g., talk to someone in the field, take a related course, start a project, volunteer, etc.)

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BG knowledge: Only commercial urban farm in SG, utilised hydroponics (water and land efficient, soil not needed, higher yield, less labour-intensive etc) Produced for local use

Importance to SG: sets a precedent for sustainable local produce to ensure food security in SG, can dictate changes in urban planning in terms of agriculture (areas set aside for farming, innovation in housing etc)

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Interesting design and mechanics of the greenhouses and their specific purposes

Not many workers around, since it is mostly automated other than quality checking

What stood out to me is the different considerations to make the plants grow most effectively

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1. We noticed that they did not use vertical farming but instead used hydroponics

2. The greenhouses had different designs and were filled with plants.

3. Everything is powered by solar panels, as much as possible

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It was interesting to see the many kinds of plants and the many plants in the greenhouses. I noticed that there weren’t a lot of workers walking around during that time suggesting the extent of the automation of the whole farm.

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1. Comcrop uses alot of up to date technology to improve their production process

2. I observed a lot of plants in their different stages of growth around the place

3. The greenhouses are very long and big which is not very common to see in singapore

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The transition from traditional farming to aquaphonics and hydrophonics is interesting as each have their own pros and cons

It definitely shows that in order to make something effective, a lot of research is required to ensure top quality

There is definitely a lot of STEAM related fields related to the farm, such as environment and automation

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Seen: Many instances of technology being utilised (Centralised computer/AI for automation, packing machines, cooling units, automated farm equipment etc) Different sections of the farm (Greenhouse, nursery, Reasearch and development, storage, packing and distribution). Physical labourers.

Things that stood out: smell was pretty bearable, the entire operation was surprising compact

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1. They really focus on sustainability and efficiency.

2. Sustainability is not hard to achieve, utilise technology to increase productivity

3. Content related to bio, chem and geog helped me to connect ideas faster

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1. They really focus on sustainability and efficiency.

2. Sustainability is not hard to achieve, utilise technology to increase productivity

3. Content related to bio, chem and geog helped me to connect ideas faster

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Helps to build a little on my analysis on certain considerations when it comes to effectiveness or benefits

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Technology can be applied to many areas even such as farming. Innovation takes time, effort and resilience. A lot of factors are considered to ensure the urban farming goes smoothly and to ensure food safety.

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Supporting local produce for these farms, which can help them to develop better and allow SG to earn more natural resources

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we learnt that very small actions can affect overall rate of production. Instead of obly focusing on the end goal, look for minor things that can be improved

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It reminds me that success isn’t easy and that’s why we have to be consistent and resilient to overcome the challenges and grow from them to succeed. It also gave me a greater appreciation for locally produced food/vegetables and the processes behind them.

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1. What did I notice?

I noticed that there were lots of technology used, like the sensor box that measures the environmental conditions internally.

2. What are some things, people or places I observed during this journey?

I saw that seedlings and more mature plants are growing separately

3. What stood out to me or caught my attention? stood out to me or caught my attention?

The plants they grow and sell are very different from what other local producers opt for.

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I noticed how the greenhouse was run in a systemic and orderly manner, each component of the comcrop protocol was well thought out, ranging from the number of times the plant was watered for optimum growth, the nutrients present in the water to even finer details such as the temperature at which the plants were grown.

The people I noticed where mostly the quality assurance and quality control members who were meticulous in their inspection of the vegetables to ensure that the consumers enjoy vegetables that are the cream of the crop(pun intended)

What specifically stood out to me was how much thought went into much thighs went into the marketing and sales of the product. Bring grown in Singapore and having a high state of technology, they would need to charge a premium price so that they are able lo still make a profit. As such they considered all aspects of marketing to ensure that maximum sales were achieved, for instance the packaging of the product, the weight of the product and how each package differs from different supermarket chains.

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Before

When I was taking part time for Fairprice, I saw a section of the store dedicated to the local produce, which is interesting as SG is promoting the 30-30 goal for local produce. I did know that there were multiple types of farms existing in Singapore, such as Nippon Koi Farm (From the TDD LJ), but I was not sure how they get from there to the stores, let alone if they are fresh or not.

During

Visiting Comcrop was a lot more different as I was expecting, as it was a rooftop "garden" with hardly much manpower at all, due to the high level of automations for growing the plants.

After

Definitely a worthwhile tour on how innovative these farms are, and it goes to show that creativity can make for high-effective work.

As for roles, I would support the use of local produce in stores whenever it comes by. Maybe a bit of volunteerism may help too.

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The optimum temperature to preserve plants is 3 degrees celcius

Research good ph levels and nutrients for different species of plants

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Buy and encourage others to buy local products, to support our country and each other to succeed together.

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1. I was thinking of how the company could afford so many expensive machinery while keeping costs relatively affordable

2. I think this place is trying to show that it is important to incorporate the latest technology into the production of crops to make them more efficient

3. Studying econs helped me understand why they did certain things that can make the process more efficient and less prone to error while also being competitive in the Singapore market for vegetables. Like using a computer to automate the daily management of tasks like watering and maintaining the conditions in the greenhouse

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I used to not have much information about urban farming, at most I heard of the concept. But through the learning journey, I got to fully understand the concepts behind urban farming and the specifics required to produce the plants. I learnt more about things like aquaponics, coco peat, floral sponge, how a master computer controls most of the things and even simple concepts like sticky tape that reduces the need for them to use pesticide. Simple jobs can be found in these farms to take care of the plants or take care of the operations.

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1. Almost every process of growing and packaging the plants are very efficient, and that there is little to no waste.

2. I think this place is trying to show that sustainability practices are very ideal for our country and that we should support sustainability.

3. The concepts we learn in Chemistry, Biology, Physics and Geography can all be related to the things we saw there

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I had thoughts that questioned the overall sustainability of the company as having to manage such high functioning technology such as the master computer which controls the exact time and amount of water released to the plants must require such a large amount of energy. However, after observing the sheer number of solar panels that was almost present above every structure, my scepticism was dissipated.

I think the message that this experience was trying to show was that it’s actually possible to accomplish goals if we have the innovative ability and think outside the box. With a country as small as Singapore with such limited land resource, we need to think outside the box and get creative with our solutions to solve the modern day problems.

Subjects such as economics could possibly explain why the comcrop company has put so much thought and effort into marketing their products. For example, since the market Singapore based is small and niche, the overall demand is lower. Paired together with the higher prices as compared to imported goods from other countries, they try their best to make their products look as attractive as possible to induce a favourable change in taste and preference and cause the demand for their goods to shift to the right, and assuming PED is greater than one since its a niche market, revenue increases as revenue=PxQ

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This affects me as it decides whether Singapore will be able to provide food for me like vegetables, now and in the future. I can explore this further by getting to know more similar initiatives happening in Singapore that has to do with the 30 by 30 plan.

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This has inspired me as it shows that growing Singapore based produce despite its concomitant challenges is still possible and this has altered my perspective as I’m am hopeful that Singapore might truly be able to accomplish the goal of meeting 30% of all its demand for by 2030.

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We can/should buy local produce to encourage these Singapore based farms to continue their production

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1. I wonder how they keep up with demand for their vegetables and how they plan on continuing to do so

2. One role I observed is the Quality assurance and Quality check role where workers assess the vegetables for any imperfections before they are packaged. A skill that may be important for this job would be an eye for detail or precision to ensure the vegetables are of consistent desirable quality.

3. It is hard to completely control how the vegetables will grow/react to different climates in Singapore even if it is in a highly controlled environment

4. Support similar initiatives by either donating or buying their produce

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We can choose to buy local producers.

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We can look for SG Fresh Produce (SGFP) logos on packaging or in-store displays and choosing to purchase these goods. This would lead to an increase in demand for such locally made produce and eventually increasing the quantity of locally made produce in the future.

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The presence of these urban farms helps strengthen our country’s food security, and it affects us because we rely on local producers when other countries are experiencing issues and cannot import food to our country.

What I can do is to try growing some of my own vegetables too and exploring the ways that we are building our food security

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Before the learning journey:

I wondered what kind of technology(hydroponics, aquaponics, vertical farming) the company uses among the many other similar companies and what differentiates them from the rest.

During the learning journey:

I noticed that most of the crucial roles were handled by the farming manager such as controlling the master computer and deciding the number of plants to harvest in a day. In order to operate the master computer, I believe that one would need to be very comfortable with technology and adept with programming skills and software, for example programming what time the machine triggers the release of the nutrients to the plant. I also think they the farming manager must be proficient and knowledgeable enough about different plants. Some plants thrive under certain conditions such as pH and temperature and the farm manager needs to be aware of such vital details and change the conditions of the farm house accordingly to ensure optimum growth.

Post-learning journey:

I noticed how some of the challenges that the company faced was the harsh weather conditions in Singapore. Being in such a hot and humid country, some of the plants may lose its turgidity due to the large amounts of water vapour in the air and this causes the plant to wilt and some of them have leaves that start to brown. This made me wonder why the master computer didn’t notice that some of the plants needed more water than usual based on the weather. I concluded that this could be because the growth of majority of the plants were more important as compared to the growth of the few plants. The plants could have also died based on other conditions so the exact cause for the unhealthy appearance is inconclusive.

I am interested in how the master computer was designed to take into account all aspects needed for germination and growth. Is the data collected from an app or do they use the real time data collected from the wind gauge? And how exactly does the computer know how to use the real time data? One step I could take is learning how to code us in different coding languages such as python and JavaScript. There are many apps and YouTube videos online that show one how to code.

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1. the use of up to date technologies to maximize crop production

2. the careful planning of space to ensure maximum efficiency around the farm.

3. the recycling and usage of natural resources like water, sunlight to achieve sustainability

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Technology can be applied everywhere, even in farms and can help make them more efficient and productive. I think comcrop is trying to show that using technology is not hard, but utilising it to ensure maximum productivity requires careful consideration. I think subjects like geog or bio can help me understand what I saw today better.

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This reminds me that it is ok to fail as long as you learn from your mistakes and improve yourself, you will be able to succeed. It also makes me appreciate local produce and the people and processes that go on behind the scenes.

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We should support local produce from these farms and encourage others to do so as well to support each other and the country

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I know about the prescence of hydroponics but not really about the processes behind it. I also know that it is a sustainable way to help achieve our 30 by 30 plan, and thus can help produce for the locals in a more environmentally sustainable and fresh way.

During the learning journey, I was surprised at the little manpower on site as many operations were digitalized, however, the worker there were still very dedicated to producing high quality fresh produce to the community , which is something to admire. They also are very detailed in their work, which is something that I can learn from them as well.

I feel that this learning journey has helped me better understand how technology can help us to make this process more efficient, that every methodology has its pros and cons, and we should not be discouraged and continue to experiment with methods to improve our work, which is something I learnt today. For roles, I will start to encourage more people to support these local farms and maybe volunteer in related projects if given the opportunity.

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1. the farm makes use of a lot of different technology and machines to help in efficiency

2. there were not that many workers around and the layout of the farm was very interesting

3. how they have to package their produce differently based on the buyer

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1. the way they make use of the "ugly" parts of the plants was nice as they would donate them instead of throwing them away

2. i think it is trying to show how even though Singapore isn't the ideal country to grow these crops it is still possible

3. i think geog, chem and bio would be helpful

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it allows me to gain a better understanding of how singapore is trying to produce locally to ensure out food security

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we should try to support more local produce or minimise on our food wastage to help ensure food security for everyone in singapore

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I only knew about the vertical farming method when it comes to urban farming, but now Im aware there are also hydroponics and aquaponics. All these methods are very efficient in developing plants, which contributes to our food security.

There is a farm manager who oversees everything in the urban farm, which requires critical thinking when problems arise and has to be resolved as soon as possible.

Even though the systems are very advanced and efficient, there are still plants that wilt due to the area having unsuitable environmental conditions for them to thrive.

I might be interested in volunteering and helping around with the planting and packaging processes. One realistic step I can take is to email them to ask for their availability.

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1) I noticed a variety of technology used to ensure an optimal conditions for harvest.

2) I noticed how the hydrophonic system used to grow the crops

3) it stood out to me the reasoning why aquaphonics isn't used but hydrophonic is used instead -

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1) The cost at which all the technology must have costed

2) It promotes sustainability in terms of technological sustainability, environmental sustainability etc

3) economics can be useful in explaining how this can lead to sustainable growth and geography can be useful in telling me the reasoning behind all these efforts -

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I noticed that there was a lot of technology being used at the farm to ensure efficiency. I also observed the different types of plants and seeds inside the greenhouses. What stood out to me was how much research and planning was done to ensure that the plants grow effectively.

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I thought it was interesting that they decided to use hydroponics as their method of farming. I think the place shows that sustainability can be achieved but it requires a lot of planning. For econs, their farming methods ensures sustainable growth as they help to minimise negative impacts on the environment.

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round roof:

to ensure water to flow down

air circulation

qc&qa:

to ensure the quality

appearance for sale

using of cocopeat instead of soil:

to prevent insects

control the nutrition

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Thoughts: Is this truly sustainable, both resource-wise and financially? Why arent there more projects similar to these (owing to the fact that Sg has a lot of high-rise buildings with ample space on top for such ventures)? Will it be enough to meet the ever growing demands of food consumption?

Ideas/Messages: They want to show that science can help us to adapt to growing needs and some ideas and be realised with enough innovation and perseverance.

Related subjects: Sciences and math can help with the more technical part of maintaining and building the farm, econs can help to make it economically sustainable and profitable, GP can understand the context in which why the farm is as it is, differing audiences for the farm and how to meet their needs

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Impacts on myself: An avenue to support home grown produce and also dictate my future sources of products id purchase (to ensure they are sustainable and supporting national goals). I can visit or patronise similar farms to get to have more insight about them and this sector in general.

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We should patronise them (to keep funding their operations) and spread awareness about them and their aims in order to further improve their farm with monetary backing

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Roles, skills, personal attributes: Management, engineers and practical 'scientists', labourers (farmers, packers, transporters etc). Multitude of skills needed like multi tasking, leadership and resilience, having to work under varying conditions (adaptability).

Insights: Althought automated, physical on site labourers are still needed. It is a very tight operation and there is minimal room for error owing to how it's related to agriculture. Yield can very due to variable weather conditions.

Roles I might play: I could advocate for the support of such local buisnesses