The Singapore Food Agency and the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment have drafted a new bill, the Food Safety and Security Bill (FSSB), which proposes a new "Defined Food" category and additional prerequisites for the pre-market approval of these foods.

According to the FSSB, novel foods, including genetically modified (GM) foods and insect-like species, would be considered a sub-category of Defined Foods with additional criteria and requirements placed for their pre-market approval.

Moreover, the FSSB intends to improve Singapore’s current novel food application process for cultivated meats, fermentation-based, and insect-derived proteins. Including GM foods under Defined Foods is meant to simplify the approval process, which currently involves Singapore’s Genetic Modification Advisory Committee.

Analyst QuickTake: Singapore is a leading hub for alternative food products and was the first country in the world to approve the sale of cultivated meats. Further, fermentation-based products like Solar Foods’ Solein protein and The Protein Brewery’s Fermotein ingredient have also been approved for commercial use. If passed, this bill would impose more stringent conditions on producers hoping to gain approval for their novel and alternative food products in Singapore.