By Jessica Cheam
Environment Correspondent
jcheam@sph.com.sg

 

A local movement is growing in Singapore. It starts with an L and ends with M.

Locavorism.

Coined by a food writer in the United States in 2005, the concept refers to eating of food grown or produced within a certain radius.

The idea is that consumers will eat food that has a smaller carbon footprint thanks to its proximity, and it is healthier too, since it spells higher quality control.

One of the forms that "locavorism" is taking, is in the increasing number of urban farms in Singapore.

One of them, profiled in my feature story on food security in The Straits Times on Monday, is Yu Neng Primary School's 20 experimental plots.

Students of the Bedok school's science club have planted seeds and are waiting for their first harvest of square watermelons.

Such fruits were first developed by Japanese farmers who found a way to grow cubic watermelons by growing the fruits in square boxes and letting them grow to the shape of the box. It is meant to make the melons easier to stack, store and transport.

The school’s science head of department Hashim Shariff said the school is excited about the project, which involves the students getting their hands dirty with earth, as they learn to plant seeds and experiment with using used coffee grounds as fertilisers.

"We try to instil a sense of environmental awareness among the students, and get them to learn aspects of science in a fun and engaging manner," he told The Straits Times.

Primary 6 student Hui Ling Ler, 12, said she and her classmates cannot wait till they see the fruits, so they can taste and share them.

It's encouraging to see how urban farming is catching on in Singapore. Gardenasia's director Kenny Eng notes that this interest has been prompted partly due to the National Parks Board’s Community in Bloom programme, which encourages community gardens - ranging from 25 sqm to 1,000 sqm - to grow by giving residents some land to start off with.

These gardens can sprout in common spaces in Housing Board estates, plots within a school and areas outside houses and condominiums and are often managed by Residents Committees.

They could plant fruits, herbs and vegetables, and in the case of Yu Neng Primary School, new-fangled produce such as square watermelons.

Where I live, I have also noticed one such garden that has sprung up recently. On weekday evenings and weekends, residents gather together to tend to the plants.

I'm not a plant expert but I can see some herbs, vegetables and fruits being grown. The area is always lively and now full of vibrant colours.

Not all community gardens have been successful, however.

Mr Eng observes that residents, who fund the cost of soil, fertilisers, seeds and equipment, sometimes find it expensive to maintain the gardens.

There have also been forum letters from residents who observed that after a few months, such gardens are neglected and some even become breeding grounds for mosquitoes.

This is why it's great to hear that Gardenasia is now teaming up with homegrown biodiesel firm Alpha Biodiesel to kick off The Living Project, a joint venture which aims to groom these gardens and get corporate sponsors like Starbucks and Brewerkz to fund them.

The crops the gardens produce, named "Comcrop" for community crops, will then be used by the corporate sponsors as a source of food supply for their operations or donated to organisations who have use for them.

Consuming local produce

Mr Eng says "locavorism", which encourages the consumption of local products, is catching on even in local restaurants, which are placing an increasing emphasis on local produce.

This will help to sustain demand for such "Comcrops". Besides The Living Project, there are other efforts such as Ground-Up Initiative, a non-profit organisation that aims to get people to reconnect with land. Its volunteers tend herbs, vegetables and fruit trees at the Bottle Tree Park in Yishun.

I remembered that when I was in Rome in February attending a conference on food security, the president of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) Kanayo told reporters that one major challenge the organisation faces is that farming suffers a bad image.

IFAD, which is tasked with eradicating rural poverty and ensuring global food security, has found it difficult to convince the younger generation in agricultural countries, that farming is an attractive career option compared to office jobs in the city, which are perceived as better-paid with 'status'.

I recognise that it's a difficult situation with no easy solution, but IFAD and various governments are trying to correct this by improving farmer's salries, and using technology to modernise the sector.

What's interesting is this. Mr Eng said that in Singapore - from what he has seen recently - urban farming is spreading and now being perceived as "modern and cool", with more people in Singapore wanting to embrace "nature-inspired lifestyles".

There's an irony here, in urbanites in Singapore taking to farming, probably for a brief escape from their busy city lives, while those in rural countries are ditching their farming jobs to pursue life in the cities.

Whatever the reality, I think it's great that "locavorism" and urban farming is spreading in Singapore.

It shows that our population is getting more environmentally-aware and there's also a desire for more control over what is eaten and to know where the food comes from. That can only be a good thing.

jcheam@sph.com.sg
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