Plans to Preserve Singapore's Food Heritage

20 Dr Lim Wee Kiak asked the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth whether there are plans by the Ministry to (i) preserve our unique local food recipes and (ii) organise more food trails in the Singapore heartlands.

The Senior Minister of State for Culture, Community and Youth (Ms Sim Ann) (for the Minister for Culture, Community and Youth): Madam, food is close to the hearts of many Singaporeans. We take deep pride in our local food heritage – recipes handed down from generation to generation, traditional ways of preparing food, neighbourhood food stalls that have been around for decades. And we want to preserve this for future generations.

The National Heritage Board (NHB) recognises that food is an important part of Singapore's cultural heritage. NHB has organised many talks, exhibitions and events to raise awareness of the importance of preserving our food heritage. In 2015, NHB presented a travelling exhibition titled "Deliciously Singaporean" to showcase Singapore's unique food heritage. This exhibition was presented at major food and heritage events and also in public libraries islandwide. Over 480,000 people visited the "Deliciously Singaporean" exhibition, which is a testament to the strong interest people have in discovering our food heritage.

Part of the exhibition entailed documenting stories and recipes from featured hawkers and their signature dishes such as Roti John, Chilli Crab and Carrot Cake. These were made into 25 short documentaries that have been uploaded on YouTube and presented as pop-up demonstrations at festivals. In this way, the stories and traditions of our local food recipes can be kept alive for future generations.

Because our food heritage resonates so strongly with many Singaporeans, we have also seen great interest from the community to play a part in preserving our food heritage. Our grant schemes have supported many of such projects which were led and initiated by Singaporeans.

The SG50 Celebration Fund supported "jiaksimi" and the My Singapore Food campaign, which featured local food recipes contributed by renowned food chefs and food enthusiasts. These recipes and stories also include the history and origins of dishes such as Hainanese Chicken Rice, Nasi Lemak and Mutton Curry, and all can be accessed on their respective food websites.

NHB's Heritage Grants Scheme is also supporting Koko's Island Adventures, a storybook that introduces children and their parents to two local ingredients – the pandan leaf and coconut – and includes recipes like Kaya and Otak Otak which feature these ingredients. This book is one way of making our food heritage come alive for the young children and their families by involving them in trying simple recipes.

Through this example, we see that preserving our food heritage is not just about famous hawker recipes. It can also be a means to inter-generational and inter-cultural bonding, through tapping on the wealth of knowledge and memories of food that is contained in our local communities.

For instance, NHB partnered grassroots organisations as well as the Inter-Racial and Religious Confidence Circle to put together a Geylang Serai Foot and Food Heritage Trail, which highlights not just historical places but also food delights from famous stalls along Geylang Road and the Haig Road Food Centre. Similar trails have been developed in Ang Mo Kio, Balestier and Jurong, in partnership with community groups. Anyone interested in discovering the community and culinary heritage of these neighbourhoods can do so at their leisure by downloading a heritage trail booklet or mobile app from NHB's website.

We will continue to provide more opportunities and platforms for our local food recipes to be preserved and to ensure that this legacy is passed on to future generations in sustainable and meaningful ways. The upcoming Singapore HeritageFest 2016 will also feature more initiatives by the younger generation to preserve traditional culinary methods and promote our food heritage.

Singapore's food culture is a part of our DNA. Whether you are a company, community group or food enthusiast who shares a love for Singaporean food, everyone has a part to play in sharing and preserving our local food culture. We welcome and support your ideas on how we can celebrate and preserve food heritage better, as a unique part of our Singaporean identity.

Dr Lim Wee Kiak (Sembawang): Mdm Speaker, I think we feel very hungry after listening to the reply by the Senior Minister of State. I would like to thank the Senior Minister of State for the very delicious reply.

First, I think all of us have heard of stories about very good food stalls in hawker centres cooked by very veteran hawkers but after a while, nobody will take over, and the art is lost completely and the skill is gone. We do not want to just merely look at the recipes. We want to really eat and taste the food.

The key concerns I have now is that while NEA takes charge of hawker centres, the hardware, but the software of it, I hope the Ministry can look into it and work closer with NEA to see how to preserve and make sure that all our hawker centres, our hawker food, can continue to survive.

Other countries or other states like Penang, there is a ruling whereby only the locals can cook Penang food. I am not sure how that works but I think the rest of the countries are trying very hard to preserve their own food. The issue is what are we doing and I hope that our food will be able to be tasted, not just looked at, in the recipes only.

Ms Sim Ann: Madam, I thank Dr Lim for his supplementary question. Indeed, for the reasons that I have stated, we recognise that food heritage is a very important part of our national identity and this is the reason why NHB and MCCY work to support efforts to document, preserve and promote local food.

Dr Lim mentioned about who can cook local hawker food. I think it is already the case today that hawker stall licensees in NEA-managed hawker centres and markets have to be Singapore Citizens or PRs, and they are also not allowed to employ foreigners.

As to whether MCCY or NHB, from a heritage perspective, feel that we need to impose further restrictions on who can cook hawker food in privately-managed food centres, I believe that would be Dr Lim's question. Madam, I think when it comes to hawker food, great taste and authenticity do matter and that is the reason why NHB and MCCY work to promote our food heritage. But we do so recognising that other factors are also very important and these also help to make Singapore hawker food very close to our hearts. This includes affordability and accessibility, and it also includes allowing for evolution of recipes, so that there will be innovation. Variations and recipes are being created all the time and also evolve to take cognisance of evolving consumer preferences such as healthier choices.

Our approach is to promote our food heritage in the ways that I have mentioned just now, rather than advocating further restrictions on who can cook hawker food in privately-managed food centres. As for the example of Penang that Dr Lim mentioned, I think it is an interesting experiment and we will certainly watch it as it unfolds.