Save Singapore's Pioneering Food Forest
Save Singapore's Pioneering Food Forest
The Issue
Dear Minister of Sustainability and the Environment, Grace Fu, and Minister of National Development, Desmond Lee:
We note the Government's decision to reacquire Green Circle Eco-Farm's land plot by 31 July 2022 for redevelopment purposes.
We had previously appealed to you to extend the land lease in a bid to conserve the precious Food Forest on our farm plot but this appeal was rejected on 25 Apr 2022.
We would now like to make an earnest plea to MSE and the Government - in reacquiring the land - to consider taking over and preserving Green Circle's Food Forest. We believe our Food Forest has tremendous value as a national resource and an innovative prototype of sustainable natural farming that is currently not available anywhere else in Singapore.
Our aim in making this appeal is not to further our business operations on this land, but to save Singapore's pioneering Food Forest for three key reasons:
1. Significant ecological and economic sustainability value supports MSE’s mission
2. Promising scientific value especially in soil microbes and human microbiome research supports Singapore’s research initiatives
3. Proximity (less than 100m) to Singapore Food Agency (SFA) agri-food cluster ensures minimal disruption to land-use plans
1. Significant ecological and economic sustainability value
When we took over the land 22 years ago, it was a barren plot of clayey soil littered with plastics and chock full of building debris. Through natural farming methods, we have now converted the land into fertile soil supporting a biodiverse ecosystem rich with native Singapore wildlife. The mature Food Forest now yields significant productivity in organic edibles with minimal maintenance required.
A Food Forest mimics a native forest with multiple interlocking 7 layers of edibles. Green Circle’s Food Forest is densely populated by a diverse range of largely perennial plants that thrive in native soil and climate. Such a design offers many benefits:
a. High productivity - achieved through efficient use of horizontal and vertical farming space with the kampong perennials providing a continuous supply of fruits and vegetables high in nutritional quality over many years without having to be replanted. This is unlike Chinese annuals like bak choy and chye sim which need to be replanted with seeds after every season.
b. High sustainability, resource efficiency, low carbon footprint - achieved through zero usage of PUB water (100% rain water), zero usage of insecticides, zero usage of chemical fertilizers, zero usage of electricity in farming methods, and the application of zero waste solutions (we compost and mulch 95 tonnes of waste per year).
c. High resilience - achieved through our 80% native perennials, which thrive in the tropical Singapore climate with minimal effort and are resilient to disease. Our Food Forest is highly immune to geopolitical, climate and market pressures, and even disruptions to global supply chains.
d. High ecological value - achieved through a biodiverse ecosystem: we now have close to 120 varieties of plants, diverse species of birds (native and migratory — 23 species observed in just over 1 hour), bees, butterflies, reptiles, plantain squirrels and even civet cats. Over the last 20 years, we have perfected natural farming in a way that restores a natural habitat for native Singapore wildlife while simultaneously serving as a productive and nutritious organic food source for Singaporeans.
We note on MSE’s website the ministry’s ambition to “develop programmes to allow humans and wildlife to live in harmony”. We believe Green Circle has achieved this successfully in a unique way that no other farm in Singapore is yet able to achieve.
If conserved, the Food Forest can serve as a prototype for sustainable farming that can:
- Help diversify the largely high-tech agri-farming efforts now spearheaded by SFA to boost Singapore’s food production and achieve food security.
- Provide ready stock of seeds, cuttings, and compost to help start mini food forests in other communities in Singapore. These new sites will show produce in just two months.
2. Promising scientific value
Thanks to 22 years of hard work, our Food Forest now boasts of 15cm of healthy, friable top soil rich with beneficial microbes. There is some scientific evidence suggesting that ingesting plants grown in healthy soil rich in microbial life could be associated with improving the biodiversity of human gut microbiome, akin to taking natural probiotics.
We note Singapore’s interest in the study of gut microbiome and human health with the establishment of the Asean Microbiome and Nutrition Centre announced in early June 2022. Our Food Forest can serve as a resource to support related research efforts. This potential for scientific value adds to the conservation value of our Food Forest.
3. Close proximity to SFA-designated agri-food cluster
Green Circle’s Food Forest lies directly across Neo Tiew Road – less than 100m – from a plot of land designated by the SFA for agri-food cluster development (see SFA’s 2020 press release). We believe that extending the boundaries of this agri-food cluster to include the Food Forest would not pose any major disruptions to the land-use masterplan.
Conclusion
For all the reasons cited above, we beseech MSE and the Singapore Government to consider conserving Green Circle’s Food Forest as a national resource.
Our aim in this appeal is not to prolong the lease for running personal farming business, but to protect a valuable eco-system that deserves to be conserved as an important part of Singapore’s sustainability vision.
There are successful examples of food forests in Japan, New Zealand, the US, and Europe, but in Singapore we are the first and only viable one thus far. It would be a loss to Singapore and a sheer waste of 22 years of experiment and effort to let our Food Forest go to ruin.
Help us save Singapore's Pioneering Food Forest.
More about us here: website/ instagram/ facebook
[Thank you for your support! Your pledge is important to us. If you find this meaningful, our only ask is for you to help us share it with your friends to gain more pledges. Donations are not required for our appeal. Any amount donated on this platform goes directly and only to Change.org in boosting this post to wider audiences.]
*********************************************************************************************************
拯救新加坡原生态食物森林先锋
至尊敬的傅海燕部长和李智陞部长，
关于政府原定在2022年7月31日取回绿园生态农场的土地，我们曾尝试以保护农场上的珍贵原生态食物森林资源为由上诉延长土地租约，但很不幸地在2022年4月25日被政府及有关部门驳回。
我们农场现想再次恳请政府和有关部门在取回绿园生态农场的土地后，重新考虑接管和保护绿园生态农场的原生态食物森林资源。
我们相信这原生态食物森林本应是我国粮食策略的其一方案，并含有可持续自然农业和创新的巨大价值。这也是新加坡的唯一原生态食物森林！
我们这次再度呼吁政府的目的并不是为了延续我们的土地租约或业务，而是为了拯救我国唯一持开创性的原生态食物森林。
原因有以下3重点：
1） 显著的生态和经济可持续性价值：
22年前当我们从政府接管这片土地时，那是一片贫瘠的粘土，到处布满了塑料和建筑废物。但通过我们这些年来的自然耕种方式与付出后，才能把这片土地转为现今肥沃的土壤和成为我国能支撑
多样生态系统的栋梁之一。如今这个成熟的原生态食物森林已能以最少的维护而达到显著的生产力。
其实在一个原生态食物森林里， 它就是模仿着天然森林里的7层可食植被。我们的绿园生态农场就是布满了种类繁多的农作物。它们彼此依赖，百花齐放。这样的原生态设计有以下优点：
1-1）低成本高生产力：通过甘榜的植物品种和有效利用横伸 和垂直耕种空间，原生态食物森林无需持续耕种就能稳定供应营养高的水果和蔬菜。相比其它蔬菜如白菜和菜心，这些都需要每个季节后重新播种施肥而增加成本。
1-2）高可持续性和资源效率，低碳排放：绿园生态农场里只使用雨水和堆肥耕种。耕种过程中不使用自来水，杀虫剂，化肥和能源。真正达到几乎零的碳排放量。我们每年堆肥所覆盖的天然废物达95吨。
1-3）高收成复原力和市场免疫力：绿园生态农场里80%的植物都是本地品种所构成。这些植物在热带气候中茁壮成长，并且对疾病具有顽强抵抗力。我们的原生态食物森林对地缘政治，气候和市场压力，甚至全球供应链中断都具有高度免疫力。
1-4）通过生物多样性的生态系统来实现高生态价值：本农场现拥有近120植物品种，不同的鸟类（含本地和迁移：一小时内观察23种鸟类），蜜蜂，蝴蝶，爬行动物，松鼠及麝猫。在过去的20年中，我们完善了自然农业，恢复了我国本土野生动物的自然栖息地。同时为新加坡人提供了富有成效和营养丰富的有机食物来源。
我们更发现到MSE的网站上提到该部门的雄心是“制定计划，让人类和野生动物和谐相处”。
这正是绿园生态农场的初衷并且我们坚信能以我们独特的经营方式来实现MSE的目标。这是我国其它农场无法实现的。
若绿园生态农场能成功得到保存，政府有关部门便可用它来作为我国可持续农业的原型来帮助由SFA牵头的“高科技农业”提供多样化元素以促进我国独立的粮食生产和安全。再提供现成的种子和堆肥把小型的食物森林推广进入我国各个区域后，三个月内便有收成。
2） 有希望的科学价值：
经过22年的艰苦努力， 绿园生态农场的种植土地上已含有15厘米的健康易碎的表层土壤和富含有益微生物。
有一些科学证据表明若摄取生长在富含微生物的土壤上所种植的植物有可能与改善人类肠道里微生物群的多样性有关，效果等同服用天然益生菌。
针对我国National Neuroscience Institute (NNI) 对肠道微生物和人类健康研究感兴趣并于2022年6月初宣布成立东盟微生物群系和营养中心 (AMNC)，绿园生态农场绝对可以作为支持相关研究工作的资源。这项科学价值的潜力大大提高了我们食物森林的保护价值。
3）地理位置靠近SFA指定的农业食品群
绿园生态农场位于 Neo Tiew Road 41号，距离SFA旗下其中一块农业食品发展土地少于100米 （请参考SFA于2020年的新闻稿）。若相关部门能将这个农业食品群的边界稍微扩大到绿园生态农场，我们相信不会对我国政府土地使用总体规划上造成任何重大破坏。
总结：
出于上述所有原因，我们恳请MSE和我国政府的相关部门慎重考虑把绿园生态农场的食物森林规划为国家资源来加以保护。
我们再次呼吁的目的并不是想延长土地租约，而是强调保护一个对国家有价值的生态系统，符合我国对可持续生态系统发展的视野。
食物森林的成功例子遍布日本，新西兰，美国和欧洲，而新加坡是有条件步这些国家的后尘的。若新加坡政府把我国唯一的可行例子也毁灭了，不但毁灭了22年的有效研究基础，更会是我国人民的一大损失。
敬请各位帮助拯救新加坡原生态食物森林先锋“绿园生态农场”。
谢谢大家
[谢谢您的支持！您的支持对我们很重要。如果您觉得这很有意义，我们唯一的要求就是请您帮助我们与您的朋友分享以获得更多支持。我们的上诉不需要捐款。在此平台上捐赠的任何金额都直接且仅用于 Change.org 以将这篇文章推广给更广泛的受众。]
10,131
The Issue
Dear Minister of Sustainability and the Environment, Grace Fu, and Minister of National Development, Desmond Lee:
We note the Government's decision to reacquire Green Circle Eco-Farm's land plot by 31 July 2022 for redevelopment purposes.
We had previously appealed to you to extend the land lease in a bid to conserve the precious Food Forest on our farm plot but this appeal was rejected on 25 Apr 2022.
We would now like to make an earnest plea to MSE and the Government - in reacquiring the land - to consider taking over and preserving Green Circle's Food Forest. We believe our Food Forest has tremendous value as a national resource and an innovative prototype of sustainable natural farming that is currently not available anywhere else in Singapore.
Our aim in making this appeal is not to further our business operations on this land, but to save Singapore's pioneering Food Forest for three key reasons:
1. Significant ecological and economic sustainability value supports MSE’s mission
2. Promising scientific value especially in soil microbes and human microbiome research supports Singapore’s research initiatives
3. Proximity (less than 100m) to Singapore Food Agency (SFA) agri-food cluster ensures minimal disruption to land-use plans
1. Significant ecological and economic sustainability value
When we took over the land 22 years ago, it was a barren plot of clayey soil littered with plastics and chock full of building debris. Through natural farming methods, we have now converted the land into fertile soil supporting a biodiverse ecosystem rich with native Singapore wildlife. The mature Food Forest now yields significant productivity in organic edibles with minimal maintenance required.
A Food Forest mimics a native forest with multiple interlocking 7 layers of edibles. Green Circle’s Food Forest is densely populated by a diverse range of largely perennial plants that thrive in native soil and climate. Such a design offers many benefits:
a. High productivity - achieved through efficient use of horizontal and vertical farming space with the kampong perennials providing a continuous supply of fruits and vegetables high in nutritional quality over many years without having to be replanted. This is unlike Chinese annuals like bak choy and chye sim which need to be replanted with seeds after every season.
b. High sustainability, resource efficiency, low carbon footprint - achieved through zero usage of PUB water (100% rain water), zero usage of insecticides, zero usage of chemical fertilizers, zero usage of electricity in farming methods, and the application of zero waste solutions (we compost and mulch 95 tonnes of waste per year).
c. High resilience - achieved through our 80% native perennials, which thrive in the tropical Singapore climate with minimal effort and are resilient to disease. Our Food Forest is highly immune to geopolitical, climate and market pressures, and even disruptions to global supply chains.
d. High ecological value - achieved through a biodiverse ecosystem: we now have close to 120 varieties of plants, diverse species of birds (native and migratory — 23 species observed in just over 1 hour), bees, butterflies, reptiles, plantain squirrels and even civet cats. Over the last 20 years, we have perfected natural farming in a way that restores a natural habitat for native Singapore wildlife while simultaneously serving as a productive and nutritious organic food source for Singaporeans.
We note on MSE’s website the ministry’s ambition to “develop programmes to allow humans and wildlife to live in harmony”. We believe Green Circle has achieved this successfully in a unique way that no other farm in Singapore is yet able to achieve.
If conserved, the Food Forest can serve as a prototype for sustainable farming that can:
- Help diversify the largely high-tech agri-farming efforts now spearheaded by SFA to boost Singapore’s food production and achieve food security.
- Provide ready stock of seeds, cuttings, and compost to help start mini food forests in other communities in Singapore. These new sites will show produce in just two months.
2. Promising scientific value
Thanks to 22 years of hard work, our Food Forest now boasts of 15cm of healthy, friable top soil rich with beneficial microbes. There is some scientific evidence suggesting that ingesting plants grown in healthy soil rich in microbial life could be associated with improving the biodiversity of human gut microbiome, akin to taking natural probiotics.
We note Singapore’s interest in the study of gut microbiome and human health with the establishment of the Asean Microbiome and Nutrition Centre announced in early June 2022. Our Food Forest can serve as a resource to support related research efforts. This potential for scientific value adds to the conservation value of our Food Forest.
3. Close proximity to SFA-designated agri-food cluster
Green Circle’s Food Forest lies directly across Neo Tiew Road – less than 100m – from a plot of land designated by the SFA for agri-food cluster development (see SFA’s 2020 press release). We believe that extending the boundaries of this agri-food cluster to include the Food Forest would not pose any major disruptions to the land-use masterplan.
Conclusion
For all the reasons cited above, we beseech MSE and the Singapore Government to consider conserving Green Circle’s Food Forest as a national resource.
Our aim in this appeal is not to prolong the lease for running personal farming business, but to protect a valuable eco-system that deserves to be conserved as an important part of Singapore’s sustainability vision.
There are successful examples of food forests in Japan, New Zealand, the US, and Europe, but in Singapore we are the first and only viable one thus far. It would be a loss to Singapore and a sheer waste of 22 years of experiment and effort to let our Food Forest go to ruin.
Help us save Singapore's Pioneering Food Forest.
More about us here: website/ instagram/ facebook
[Thank you for your support! Your pledge is important to us. If you find this meaningful, our only ask is for you to help us share it with your friends to gain more pledges. Donations are not required for our appeal. Any amount donated on this platform goes directly and only to Change.org in boosting this post to wider audiences.]
*********************************************************************************************************
拯救新加坡原生态食物森林先锋
至尊敬的傅海燕部长和李智陞部长，
关于政府原定在2022年7月31日取回绿园生态农场的土地，我们曾尝试以保护农场上的珍贵原生态食物森林资源为由上诉延长土地租约，但很不幸地在2022年4月25日被政府及有关部门驳回。
我们农场现想再次恳请政府和有关部门在取回绿园生态农场的土地后，重新考虑接管和保护绿园生态农场的原生态食物森林资源。
我们相信这原生态食物森林本应是我国粮食策略的其一方案，并含有可持续自然农业和创新的巨大价值。这也是新加坡的唯一原生态食物森林！
我们这次再度呼吁政府的目的并不是为了延续我们的土地租约或业务，而是为了拯救我国唯一持开创性的原生态食物森林。
原因有以下3重点：
1） 显著的生态和经济可持续性价值：
22年前当我们从政府接管这片土地时，那是一片贫瘠的粘土，到处布满了塑料和建筑废物。但通过我们这些年来的自然耕种方式与付出后，才能把这片土地转为现今肥沃的土壤和成为我国能支撑
多样生态系统的栋梁之一。如今这个成熟的原生态食物森林已能以最少的维护而达到显著的生产力。
其实在一个原生态食物森林里， 它就是模仿着天然森林里的7层可食植被。我们的绿园生态农场就是布满了种类繁多的农作物。它们彼此依赖，百花齐放。这样的原生态设计有以下优点：
1-1）低成本高生产力：通过甘榜的植物品种和有效利用横伸 和垂直耕种空间，原生态食物森林无需持续耕种就能稳定供应营养高的水果和蔬菜。相比其它蔬菜如白菜和菜心，这些都需要每个季节后重新播种施肥而增加成本。
1-2）高可持续性和资源效率，低碳排放：绿园生态农场里只使用雨水和堆肥耕种。耕种过程中不使用自来水，杀虫剂，化肥和能源。真正达到几乎零的碳排放量。我们每年堆肥所覆盖的天然废物达95吨。
1-3）高收成复原力和市场免疫力：绿园生态农场里80%的植物都是本地品种所构成。这些植物在热带气候中茁壮成长，并且对疾病具有顽强抵抗力。我们的原生态食物森林对地缘政治，气候和市场压力，甚至全球供应链中断都具有高度免疫力。
1-4）通过生物多样性的生态系统来实现高生态价值：本农场现拥有近120植物品种，不同的鸟类（含本地和迁移：一小时内观察23种鸟类），蜜蜂，蝴蝶，爬行动物，松鼠及麝猫。在过去的20年中，我们完善了自然农业，恢复了我国本土野生动物的自然栖息地。同时为新加坡人提供了富有成效和营养丰富的有机食物来源。
我们更发现到MSE的网站上提到该部门的雄心是“制定计划，让人类和野生动物和谐相处”。
这正是绿园生态农场的初衷并且我们坚信能以我们独特的经营方式来实现MSE的目标。这是我国其它农场无法实现的。
若绿园生态农场能成功得到保存，政府有关部门便可用它来作为我国可持续农业的原型来帮助由SFA牵头的“高科技农业”提供多样化元素以促进我国独立的粮食生产和安全。再提供现成的种子和堆肥把小型的食物森林推广进入我国各个区域后，三个月内便有收成。
2） 有希望的科学价值：
经过22年的艰苦努力， 绿园生态农场的种植土地上已含有15厘米的健康易碎的表层土壤和富含有益微生物。
有一些科学证据表明若摄取生长在富含微生物的土壤上所种植的植物有可能与改善人类肠道里微生物群的多样性有关，效果等同服用天然益生菌。
针对我国National Neuroscience Institute (NNI) 对肠道微生物和人类健康研究感兴趣并于2022年6月初宣布成立东盟微生物群系和营养中心 (AMNC)，绿园生态农场绝对可以作为支持相关研究工作的资源。这项科学价值的潜力大大提高了我们食物森林的保护价值。
3）地理位置靠近SFA指定的农业食品群
绿园生态农场位于 Neo Tiew Road 41号，距离SFA旗下其中一块农业食品发展土地少于100米 （请参考SFA于2020年的新闻稿）。若相关部门能将这个农业食品群的边界稍微扩大到绿园生态农场，我们相信不会对我国政府土地使用总体规划上造成任何重大破坏。
总结：
出于上述所有原因，我们恳请MSE和我国政府的相关部门慎重考虑把绿园生态农场的食物森林规划为国家资源来加以保护。
我们再次呼吁的目的并不是想延长土地租约，而是强调保护一个对国家有价值的生态系统，符合我国对可持续生态系统发展的视野。
食物森林的成功例子遍布日本，新西兰，美国和欧洲，而新加坡是有条件步这些国家的后尘的。若新加坡政府把我国唯一的可行例子也毁灭了，不但毁灭了22年的有效研究基础，更会是我国人民的一大损失。
敬请各位帮助拯救新加坡原生态食物森林先锋“绿园生态农场”。
谢谢大家
[谢谢您的支持！您的支持对我们很重要。如果您觉得这很有意义，我们唯一的要求就是请您帮助我们与您的朋友分享以获得更多支持。我们的上诉不需要捐款。在此平台上捐赠的任何金额都直接且仅用于 Change.org 以将这篇文章推广给更广泛的受众。]
10,131
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Petition created on 24 June 2022