Giving Compass' Take:

• Robin Hicks explains that COVID-induced food insecurity has revealed an existing flaw in our food systems: underinvestment in food tech. 

• Are you prepared to support food tech that aims to reduce instability in food systems? Which food system(s) can you help to support? 

• Learn more about the use of food tech during COVID-19. 

The ongoing coronavirus pandemic, which so far has claimed more than 500,000 lives, has upended global food supply chains. It has drained food banks and restricted the planting and harvesting of crops as well as food distribution, prompting calls for a more localised approach to food production.

Venture capital investing in food and agriculture technology dropped by 5 per cent last year, to US$19.8 billion, from a record high of US$20.8 billion in 2018. By comparison, more than US$4 trillion was spent on information technology in 2019.

With greater investment in foodtech, more food could be produced locally, so the dependence of countries like Singapore on food imports could be curtailed, he said. The tightening of the border between Singapore and Malaysia earlier this year prompted panic buying in Singapore, as consumers worried about food shortages.

Read the full article about investing in food tech by Robin Hicks at Eco-Business.