This year's event, with over 60 participants including professionals from local SMEs, MNCs, and diverse food industries, offered valuable insights on the theme, "Building a Safer and Greener Future Through Food Safety and Sustainability."

The event featured engaging discussions on a wide range of topics, from Singapore Standards development and food safety quality management to innovative approaches such as Clean and Green Urban Farm standards and advanced food processing technologies.

We were honored to have Mr. Tay Jih-Sin as our Guest of Honour and extend our heartfelt thanks to the distinguished speakers who generously shared their invaluable expertise on these important subjects.

The event offered valuable insights across four key areas:

• Foundations of food safety and quality management
• Exploration of various food safety certification systems
• Clean and Green Urban Farm Standards, such as SS 661 for Agriculture and SS 689 for Aquaculture
• Supporting sustainability through responsible operational practices and waste management

A distinguished lineup of speakers shared their expert knowledge on these key topics.

• Mr. Richard Khaw, Deputy Director of SAS, clarified the distinction between standards and regulations, explaining how standards are specifically tailored to meet the needs of Singapore’s industries. 
• Dr. Gan Heng Hui highlighted the importance of prerequisite programmes—an essential yet often overlooked component of food safety systems. 
• Dr. Han Zi Yang introduced the newly published Clean and Green Urban Farm Standards (SS 707) for layer farms, marking a significant step towards promoting sustainable and resource-efficient farming practices.

Innovative approaches were also highlighted by organisations like bioMérieux and Kitchen Haus Group, showcasing efforts in microbial testing, sustainable packaging, and food quality management. Singnergy and Anaergia presented pioneering work in transforming food industry byproducts into valuable resources, supporting waste reduction and environmental sustainability.

Feedback from attendees was overwhelmingly positive, with participants appreciating the relevance and timeliness of the topics covered. Many commended the event’s seamless organisation and high-quality content, noting that the speakers provided practical insights and candidly addressed real-world industry challenges. There was strong interest in exploring related subjects, including alternative proteins, quality management systems (QMS), sustainable food production, and food security. Attendees expressed particular enthusiasm for learning more about collaboration opportunities in sustainability, waste management, food safety, and cold chain logistics, all with a focus on sustainability. The event reinforced the industry's commitment to a future where safety and sustainability go hand in hand, leaving participants with a renewed sense of purpose in advancing these critical principles.