APRU proudly launched its inaugural annual Food Security and Agritech Symposium on November 2–4, co-hosted by the National University of Singapore (NUS) and Nanyang Technological University Singapore (NTU), at the Campus for Research Excellence and Technological Enterprise (CREATE) initiated by the National Research Foundation (NRF) in Singapore. The symposium marked a significant milestone for the APRU Food Security and Agritech Program. Bringing together 80 experts from across the Pacific Rim—41 in person and 39 virtually—the symposium served as a dynamic platform for interdisciplinary collaboration, knowledge exchange, and innovation. Over three days, participants explored cutting-edge solutions to global food challenges, including climate-resilient crops, new vegetable varieties, machine visions with robotics and drones, and human sensory research. A Timely Response to a Global Crisis At the opening panel discussion, Program Co-Directors, Anne Lochoff, Nanyang Technological University Singapore, Woo Soo Kim, Simon Fraser University, and Veera Sekaran, National University of Singapore, emphasized the program’s mission to harness interdisciplinary research, innovation and agritech solutions across the Asia-Pacific region in response to the urgent challenge of ensuring that every person, at all times, has physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food.   (from left to right) Anne Lochoff, Woo Soo Kim, Veera Sekaran   From the perspective of small and medium farmers, this means prioritizing food sovereignty—empowering local producers to control their food systems—while adopting new technologies that enhance autonomy and align with traditional knowledge and practices. The agritech community supported this vision by demonstrating scalable, affordable tools such as open-source digital platforms, cost-effective sensors, and AI-driven decision aids that are co-designed with farmers to minimize adoption barriers and ensure equitable access. The path to food security lies in collaboration across disciplines, sectors, and nations as well as the timely application of science and technology to real-world needs. Joint activities will focus on actionable technologies and building capacities for sustainable development. The program leaders highlighted that the annual symposium will provide a vital platform to transform shared knowledge into scalable impact, bringing together practice, policy and science for a stronger and more sustainable agrifood future in the Asia Pacific.    The symposium builds on the foundation and represents an important corner stone of the APRU Food Security and Agritech Program, launched in 2024 and led by NTU, NUS, and SFU. The program aims to foster innovation through agritech solutions such as AI, IoT, robotics, and alternative proteins, while empowering underrepresented communities and nurturing future leaders in sustainable development. The APRU Food Security and Agritech Program and Symposium was made possible by: Anne Lochoff (Nanyang Technological University, Singapore) Woo Soo Kim (Simon Fraser University) Veera Sekaran (National University of Singapore) Shi-Fang Chen (National Taiwan University) Matthew Wilson (The University of Adelaide) Nikki Rutamu (UC Davis) Yukino Mori (Simon Fraser University) From Lab to Table: Transforming Food Systems Through Science and Collaboration Prior to the opening, the symposium offered the participants a unique opportunity to explore Singapore’s innovation ecosystem through a guided tour of the Proteins4Singapore facility at NTU.   Visit Proteins4Singapore lab at NTU   The formal proceedings began with a keynote by Prof. Paul Teng, Senior Fellow and Advisor in Food Security from S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS) at NTU, who presented the ASEAN 10-Year Agri-Food Outlook and 5-Year Strategic Plan (2026–2030). On the second day, Prof. Peter Preiser, also from NTU, delivered a session titled “Food Security in Megacities of the Future.” The final day featured Prof. Prakash Kumar from NUS, who examined whether urban farming could be a viable solution for sustainable food production. Throughout the symposium, participants engaged in interactive working groups using formats such as World Café and Fishbowl Deep Dives. These sessions facilitated rich dialogue and provided input and direction for the program’s future collaborative activities relating to climate-smart agriculture, agritech engineering, and regenerative food systems. Researchers and students presented over 40 abstracts across three thematic tracks, sparking discussions on topics ranging from AI-powered phenotyping and aquaponics to climate forecasting and food waste reduction.     The symposium concluded with a panel discussion where the working groups shared their proposed collaborative initiatives, followed by a tour of NUS Agritech Translation Programme’s Translation Facility.    Participants on a site tour at the NUS    Next Steps: Data, Partnerships, and Innovation A key outcome of the symposium is the launch of a data-driven initiative to support agile, cross-border collaboration on food security and agritech innovation. Researchers, academic experts and practitioners from APRU member institutions and across the Asia Pacific working on data-driven decisions making tools for climate-smart agriculture are invited and encouraged to engage and actively patriciate in the program and its upcoming activities. As Prof. Thomas Schneider, Chief Executive of APRU noted, “This program, will advance regional innovations in food systems while strengthening resilience by bringing together interdisciplinary experts and practitioners to address local agricultural needs and global sustainability goals.” For more information about the program and the symposium, visit the APRU Food Security and Agritech Program page, and join the program’s mailing list. Interest parties can also direct inquiries to the program manager at [email protected].  

The Canada-in-Asia Agri-food conference was held in Singapore on February 26-27 which provided a timely opportunity for APRU to highlight its new APRU Food Security Program.  Featuring program leader, Prof. Woo Soo Kim of Simon Fraser University’s School of Mechatronic Systems Engineering; Prof. Zeng-Yei Hseu of National Taiwan University’s Department of Agricultural Chemistry, Prof Rickey Yada, Dean, Faculty of Land and Food Systems, as panelists discussed Agri-tech Policy providing a comparative analysis of Canadian and Asian Approaches as well as discussing global food production. CIAC2024 Agri-food convened leaders from the private sector, governments, universities, and other institutions from across Asia and Canada in agri-food and related sectors for networking and inter-disciplinary discussion on some of the most pressing issues in the Canada-Asia agri-food space. Hosted by the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada and Universities Canada, APRU supported the conversation between government, higher education and business to facilitate the exchange in the agri-food technology ecosystem. Catalyzing the development and deployment of next-generation agri-technologies requires supportive ecosystems with truly collaborative partners. “The triple helix model of collaboration among post-secondary institutions, government, and companies is the crucial driver of innovation in agritech and its adoption for enhancing food security. The agritech innovation ecosystem thrives on the knowledge sharing, application and investment, crucial for the growth and prosperity of agrifood across the region,” Said Dr. Woo Soo Kim, Scientific Director, B.C. Centre for Agritech Innovation, and Professor, School of Mechatronic Systems Engineering, Simon Fraser University. Global food production must expand to meet growing demand. Exploring new technologies and innovative methods being deployed in Asia can support methods to increase food production worldwide. “Soil is integral to a one health strategy where human and environmental health are interdependent. The planet’s sustainability depends on soil health because many issues dealing with animal and plant, environmental, or human health are always linked to soil functions. We cannot use a one-sized fits all approach to enrich soil health in localities all across the Asia Pacific region. Governments and researchers must work together to support small farmers to gain the knowledge and technology to sustain soil for the agri-food economy at scale,” said Dr. Zeng-Yei HSEU, Distinguished professor, Department of Agricultural Chemistry, National Taiwan University.  APRU member, The University of British Columbia (UBC) was also a proud university partner of the Canada-in-Asia Conferences 2024, and for the second consecutive year, attended the conference with a delegation of researchers and experts to engage in key cross-sectoral dialogue and foster new connections. UBC is committed to deepening engagement in the region and to fostering partnerships in areas of shared interest, including agri-food and climate, in support of Canada’s Indo-Pacific Strategy. The APRU Food Security Working Group was formed in 2023 with inaugural representatives from Canada, the United States, Singapore, Taiwan, and Australia. As the first initiative conceived and developed by the APRU Food Security Working Group, the APRU Food Security Webinar Series 2024 is delving deeply into regional technological advancements in the realms of precision agriculture and food shelf life extension in the Asia-Pacific. The APRU Food Security Working Group met on the sidelines of the Canada in Asia Conference to discuss the future development of the working group and new opportunities. L-R: Christina Schönleber, APRU; Professor Thorsten Wohland, National University of Singapore; Professor Thomas Schneider, APRU; Professor Annie Lochoff, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore; Professor HSEU Zeng-Yei, National Taiwan University; and Professor Woo Soo Kim, Simon Fraser University

Working Groups represent an important opportunity for collaborative research through partnerships with members of the APRU network, fostering new research collaborations and cross-disciplinary engagement, and contributing to solutions for the pressing challenges of this century.  Four Working Groups are confirmed to be at the APRU Food Security & Agritech Conference 2026. Conference participants can indicate their interest in joining one of the groups while completing registration.   🌍 Climate Resilience working group co-led by: Anne Lochoff, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore Nikki Grey Rutamu, UC Davis Including digital soil mapping to inform policy and action, enhance traceability to build trust, and facilitate decarbonization efforts for soil carbon initiatives. We encourage data scientists to join the group with experience in analyzing, modeling, and predicting data related to soil intelligence. 🤖 AI-Enabled Resource Efficiency working group co-led by: Woo Soo Kim, Simon Fraser University Elia Scudiero, UC Riverside The group explores how AI can improve management of water, energy, nutrients, and other critical inputs to address regional challenges such as climate variability, resource scarcity, and growing food demand. The goal is to foster interdisciplinary collaboration for the innovative approaches integrating AI, modeling, and advanced sensing technologies to improve resource productivity, agricultural resilience, and environmental sustainability. 🍎 Food Availability and Access working group co-led by: Matthew Wilson, Adelaide University Hannah Wittman, The University of British Columbia This working group focuses on interdisciplinary approaches to reduce food waste and loss, create sustainable strategies that address food security, sovereignty, justice and resilience, while promoting better health and nutrition outcomes.  🎯Disease/Pest Control working group led by: Patricia Springer, UC Riverside Integrating pest management with biological controls and natural pesticides, utilizing AI-driven monitoring and drones for early detection, implementing crop diversification and rotation to interrupt pest cycles, and using climate-resistant varieties to reduce chemical use and boost ecosystem resilience.   Find out more about the APRU Food Security and Agritech Program at https://www.apru.org/programs/pacific-rim-challenges/food-security/