Food security has been a key emphasis for Singapore, an island nation with limited resources. The recent pandemic emphasises the importance of self-sustenance. Urban farming and indoor cultivation of vegetables have increasingly attracted the attention of many in
an effort to ensure self-sufficiency for the nation. Establishment of local urban farming reduces long distance transportation which
would equate to lower carbon footprint and shorter time for fresh produce to reach the consumers. This in turn allows consumers to
enjoy better quality food, which concurrently reduce wastage. In addition, urban farming allows the growth and nutritional profiles of vegetables at various growth stages to be better monitored.

At NERI, our research team are working on growth assessment and the nutritional and nutraceutical profiles of locally-grown vegetables. We
have successfully established indoor farming and through the use of sophisticated equipment, non-invasive monitoring of the vegetables from seedling to adult stages could be achieved. The biomass and shape of vegetables grown at various growth stages under different cultivation conditions can be assessed and their yield quantified. We have, in parallel, developed analytical techniques for simultaneous profiling of
various groups of health promoting compounds, allowing nutritional and nutraceutical profiles of vegetables to be established within shorter
time, which provide useful information to health conscious consumers. Such techniques can be used not only to assess the nutritional
values of commonly consumed vegetables but also for investigating a spectrum of valuable health relevant compounds in new varieties of vegetable that are not available locally. This approach will offer the consumers with wider choice of vegetables as well as value-added
fresher produce that are grown at our door step.