Sweet basil at ComCrop, a commercial hydroponics farm in Singapore.

Sweet basil at ComCrop, a commercial hydroponics farm in Singapore.

Photographer: Ore Huiying

Markets Magazine

Singapore Grows Food on Top of Skyscrapers—and Anywhere Else It Can Find

The island nation harnesses technology and tradition to wean itself from imports: A photo essay.

I grew up in the fourth generation of a family of farmers in Singapore. We cultivated crops on the island from the 1960s through 2020. Now let me tell you about the future. Singapore imports more than 90% of its food. The government wants to produce 30% locally by the year 2030. Take a tour of the many ways, from traditional to high-tech, that a densely packed nation is trying to achieve greater food security.