Canada in Singapore: developments, learnings and insights from AFTEA 2024
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Written by: James Street, Director of Business Development
As I round off day 3 here at Agri-Food Tech Expo Asia (AFTEA), a few themes come to mind:
- Industry seems primed to get back up to speed. Although pre-COVID levels still have to manage some headwinds, companies are growing and investment is getting closer.
- Food products, not just protein, cannot be discussed without including sustainability factors.
- Canada is increasingly recognized as a valuable partner in developing global food companies.
Interim CEO, Frank Hart and I were joined by Global Affairs Trade Commissioner Francis Chan and Protein Industries Canada (PIC) member James Szarko of Botaneco for a curated set of meetings with Singaporean R&D leadership.
We met with the National University of Singapore (NUS) for a detailed discussion of how Canadian ingredients could be more readily utilized in NUS activities. I will be following up with opportunities to test Canadian plant-based crops in hybrid products using plant-based and algae-based protein to develop both food and feed products. NUS and PIC will be working closely to monitor NUS challenge statements and projects for CDN ingredient applications.
Next was Nurasa, the independent R&D company created by the global investment company Temesek, which accelerates the adoption of affordable and appealing better-for-you foods using their innovation platform, alongside partners and their collaboration community. At Nurasa, we explored formal R&D mechanisms to collaborate with PIC and Canadian companies in order to strengthen trade and unlock opportunities for Canadian ingredients in the ASEAN. Nurasa recognizes and wishes to leverage the Canadian value proposition by partnering with PIC in pursuit of enhanced market access and integration of Canadian ingredients in ASEAN food products. Nurasa and others site the appealing carbon footprint, breadth of ingredients and scope of functionalities they provide.
The Singapore Institute of Food and Biotechnology Innovation (SIFBI), another R&D agency supported by the Singaporean government, briefed us on the increasing demand for ingredients and food products that help to address positive health outcomes. For SIFBI, understanding the Asian phenotype is the main focus and recognizes that Canadian ingredients that offer strong digestibility and absorption attributes pose the greatest opportunities. Again, our host will work with PIC to showcase current and future R&D challenge statements and work with me to explore Canadian ingredient applications.
The Agtech Canadian Technology Accelerator Program, led by Tom Chan here in Singapore, hosted a fantastic pitch session and reception that included PIC members Create Foods Specialty Inc. and Botaneco. Investors in the crowd were keen to learn more and meetings were underway until the end of the event. Create Foods Specialty and Botaneco both had the opportunity to pitch their companies again at the AFTEA Canadian showcase event. Kudos to all the pitches for telling their great stories in under 8 minutes!
The AFTEA show itself was a little bigger than last year and the Canadian Pavilion, co-sponsored by PIC was a popular spot to visit. One of the highlights of the show's agenda was the Canadian panel discussion. The panel featured PIC Interim CEO Frank Hart, Diedrah Kelly, ED at the Indo-Pacific Agri-food and Agriculture Office, Dr. Gaurav Sharma of Shandi Global, and Nurasa CEO Xiuling Guo.
Panellists, led by Diedrah Kelly, discussed and promoted sustainability in the context of agricultural practices, an appealing climate for investment combined with a robust R&D ecosystem creates a value proposition—especially in plant-based—that strengthens Canada as a strategic partner. Frank Hart added insights on funding innovation, PIC’s impact in growing the sector and the potential for Canada and Singapore to work closer together via Nurasa.
Nurasa added that they can accelerate innovation and quality of life/health outcomes with like-minded partners, such as PIC, by adopting Canadian ingredients that deliver more sustainable nutrition for current and future generations of Asia.
Shandi Global spoke to increasing overall demand for protein and Canada as a preferred location and partner in developing nutritional products for many markets including Australia, Thailand and Africa.
All in all, this has been an encouraging week. Consumer and government interest in the region continues to rise and the investment community appears to be getting ready for a busy 2025.
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