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Top 3 Grants by the Singapore Tourism Board - 26 Oct 2022 Top 10 Grants for farming companies in Singapore - 20 September 2022 Fund your startup with The Startup SG Tech - 7 September 2022 New Venture Launching Program Supported by EDB - 11 August 2022 Digital Innovations Grant for Charitable Institutions - 12 July 2022 See older blogs under 'Archives' section below |
 To strengthen Singapore’s food supply chain and increase food security by developing urban farming, the Singapore Government has various grants and funds to encourage farming companies to use technology and encourage local development of agriculture. This is to work towards the ‘30 by 30’ goal — to build up our agri-food industry’s capability and capacity to produce 30% of our nutritional needs locally and sustainably by 2030. This target also features in the Singapore Green Plan 2030 and will help build a more resilient food future. Here, we briefly list out some attractive grants/funds which aligned with the theme: 1. Agri-Food Cluster Transformation (ACT) Fund - Technology Upscaling (TU) This grant from Singapore Food Agency (SFA) supports the purchase of large commercial-scale, automated, and advanced farming technology solutions that will be integrated with agri-input production, post-harvest, and waste treatment technologies. SFA licensed Singapore-based farms that are setting up new farm sites or retrofitting indoor spaces within ready industrial spaces for farming can also tap on the fund. Applicants must have a secured farm site for implementation of the proposed farming system. Applicant’s farm should be free of unauthorized or illegal activities for the past 1 year and completed any on-going approved projects co-funded by SFA to be eligible for ACT TU grant. The maximum funding support for Technology Upscaling project is capped at $4.5mil for farming technology/system; and $1.5mil for farm-related infrastructure cost. The total funding amount that can be awarded to an applicant during the 5-year availability of ACT Fund is $6mil. The level of funding will also be subject to the merit of the project scored by an internal SFA’s panel against the set of evaluation criteria such as farming capacity, impact on productivity, economic viability and technical capability etc. The application period is from 30 April to 31 Dec 2025. Project implementation period is 18 months from the date of Letter of Offer (LOF). 2. Agri-Food Cluster Transformation (ACT) Fund - Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG) for Capability Upgrading (CU) Component This grant co-funds the purchase of farm equipment and systems from SFA's pre-qualified list and expenses related to the Clean & Green (C&G) Standard adoption and GAP certification. Eligibility for this grant is similar to ACT TU grant above, while evaluation criteria is based on the impact on farming capacity and productivity, and improvement in sustainability. The total funding amount that can be awarded for the 5-year is $100,000 (inclusive of one-off $15,000 for qualifying C&G consultancy fees ($10,000) and certification-related fees ($5,000)). The Capability Upgrading component will be available as part of the Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG) from 30 Apr 2021 to 31 Dec 2025. Project implementation period is 6 months from the date of Letter of Offer. 3. NEA 3R This is a co-funding scheme to encourage organizations to reduce waste disposed of at National Environment Agency (NEA)'s incineration plants and disposal facilities through the implementation of waste minimization and recycling projects. This grant is available to any organization in Singapore, at any time of the year, based on a first-come, first-served basis, subject to the availability of funds. Eligible projects must result in an increase in the quantity of solid waste (excludes toxic and chemical wastes) recycled or a reduction in the quantity of solid waste generated. The minimum tonnage eligibility is 100 tones reduced, reused or recycled over the whole project duration. Projects also must not have commenced at the time of application. The 3R Fund will co-fund up to 80 per cent of qualifying costs, subject to a cap of $1 million per project or per applicant. For multiple onsite waste treatment systems within the same premises or in different premises, the qualifying costs of the system will be tiered accordingly as below:
The maximum project duration is 3.5 years. In addition, the minimum duration of the operational phase is one year. 4. SG Eco Fund This is a $50 million grant from the Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment Singapore which was set up in 2020 to support projects that advance environmental sustainability and involve the community. Any Singaporean individual, group or organization can apply for this grant if your projects improve the environment or advance environmental sustainability in Singapore; engage and/or involve the community; and not have obtained funding from other government sources. The SG Eco Fund has two categories: Sprout (Up to $10,000 can be submitted throughout the year) and Main (more than $10,000 can be submitted between 1 May and 31 August each year). The SG Eco Fund can support up to 80% of supportable cost items, capped at $1 million. Grants will be given out on a reimbursement basis, upon completion of project milestones, and should be submitted within three months of the project completion date.  5. Energy Efficiency Fund - Energy Efficient Technology
This is another fund from the National Environment Agency which supports companies to adopt energy efficient equipment or technologies. The grant quantum will be calculated based on the total amount of carbon abatement achieved by the project, subject to a cap of 70% of the qualifying costs. Eligible applicants must be a Singapore-registered owner or operator of a manufacturing facility sited in Singapore with SSIC code 10XXX to 32XXX, and has annual group sales turnover of less than $500 million. Eligible projects must involve installation and use of energy efficient equipment or technologies with proven track record of energy savings in an industrial facility. The project must result in measurable and verifiable energy savings; and shall be completed within 36 months from the approval of grant. Disbursement is on a reimbursement basis. Companies can claim the full grant amount after project completion and energy savings are measured and verified. 6. Energy Efficiency Fund - Energy Management Information System (EMIS) Another NEA grant supports companies to install EMIS to monitor and manage energy consumption in a structured manner to achieve efficiency improvements. Energy Management Information System grant co-funds up to 50% of the qualifying costs capped at:
The applicant must be a Singapore-registered owner or operator of an industrial facility sited in Singapore with SSIC code 10XXX to 32XXX or 35XXX to 38XXX. Project EMIS must only involve energy management-related functions and should be commissioned within 2 years from grant approval. The EMIS should cover all major energy consuming systems or energy streams in the facility. Disbursement is on a reimbursement basis. Companies can claim the disbursement requests as follows:
7. Research and Innovation Scheme for Companies (RIS(C)) This scheme encourages companies in Singapore to conduct or expand their Research & Development (R&D) activities in science and technology. The co-funding support is up to 30% qualifying project costs such as manpower, training, consultancy, equipment, software, intellectual property, and materials costs. Local manpower may be accorded support of up to 50%. The timing for project execution is 3 years 8. Enterprise Development Grant (EDG) - Innovation & Productivity: Automation Enterprise Singapore offers this grant to support eligible company’s usage of automation and technology which can result in tangible benefits, significant growth and resource efficiency, such as automation of production lines using robotics, artificial Intelligence, or implementing customized ERP and production management software, etc. Eligible businesses can also apply for the 100% Investment Allowance (IA) on the qualifying equipment costs net of grant, capped at S$10 million per project. The 100% IA grant scheme is available until 31 March 2023. Companies keen to apply for the Enterprise Development Grant (EDG) must be registered and operating in Singapore, have a minimum of 30% local shareholding, traced to ultimate individual shareholders level, and be in a financially viable position to start and complete the project Support level: SMEs up to 70%; non-SMEs up to 50% of qualified costs. Most projects undertaken by companies should be completed within 12 to 18 months upon successful grant application. 9. Enterprise Development Grant (EDG) - Core Capabilities: Strategic Brand and Marketing Development This is another noteworthy grant from Enterprise Singapore, it co-funds costs of professional marketing and branding consultants to help your company better capture target audiences and markets by differentiating your brand, and your products and services. The grant can cover diagnosis and assessment of company financial value and competition, then research, recommend, and develop strategy plans to optimize marketing resources and improve customer communications. Companies need to be registered and operating in Singapore to apply for this grant. Additionally, the company must have a minimum of 30% local shareholding, and be in a financially viable position to start and complete the project. Support level is similar to automation, SMEs up to 70%; non-SMEs up to 50% of qualified costs. 10. Market Readiness Assistance (MRA) Grant This is a popular grant to help Small and Medium enterprises (SMEs) expand overseas. Support is limited to one activity in a single overseas market with up to 70% of eligible costs, capped at S$100,000 per company per new market:
To be eligible, a business entity must be registered/incorporated in Singapore, and have at least 30% local shareholding. Company's Group Annual Sales Turnover should be not more than S$100 million, OR Company's Group Employment Size should be not more than 200 employees. The last requirement is new market entry criteria, i.e. target overseas country whereby the applicant has not exceeded S$100,000 in overseas sales in each of the last three preceding years. Companies must submit their applications no earlier than six months after the project start date. All claims will be disbursed on a reimbursement basis. The processing time for MRA is about 8 to 12 weeks from the submission of all required information. The Singapore Government offers a great variety of grants to support local farming business. If your business is eligible for any of the grants above, please contact us to get a free consultation to identify suitable grant support and. Thereafter, should you decide to engage us, we can assist you in your end-to-end grant application and claims journey. Images: https://www.freepik.com/free-photo/smart-agriculture-iot-with-hand-planting-tree-background https://www.freepik.com/free-photo/young-plants-growing-very-large-plant-commercial-greenhouse  What is Startup SG Tech? Do you have an idea to develop breakthrough technology or thinking of start up a business in technology in Singapore? Then the Startup SG Tech grant is what you need to kick start your business. Founded in 2017, Startup SG Tech supports the local development of proprietary technology solutions with early-stage funding for the successful applicants. Companies may apply for Proof Of Concept (POC) or Proof Of Value (POV) grants depending on the stage of development of the technology/concept. A POC project is a tech solution at the conceptualization stage, you need to clearly explain and prove the concept behind the technology solution. While POV project is a tested concept, which need to carry out development of a prototype, and demonstrate its’ commercial merit. The Startup SG Tech scheme will include share subscription rights of 50% of the awarded grant amount to EnterpriseSG or its selected nominee, up to 49% of the total shareholding of the company. This share subscription rights will take effect when a qualifying equity financing round take place. The grants will be awarded upon the completion of each milestone and cap for POC will remain at $250,000 and POV at $500,000. How to apply for Startup SG Tech? The procedure involves a three-stage application. In the first stage, a summary of the project is submitted to Enterprise Singapore. If after the initial review the project is found to be eligible, a more detailed application has to be submitted in the second stage. Shortlisted applicants from the second stage are invited to present their proposals to a final evaluation panel comprising industry experts. The decision of the evaluation panel is final. There are 3 stages to the application process for Startup SG Tech:
Once again, if you are offered the grant, bear in mind that the grant will carry an equity component where you will be required to increase your paid-up capital by an additional 10% and 20% for the POC and POV grants respectively. For projects that pass all three stages, it takes approximately three months from the date of the second Stage’s submission to receiving Offer letter of the Startup SG Tech grant. After registering the interest, it takes approximately three months, for all three stages of evaluation, before the letter of offer of the grant is received.  Who is eligible for this grant?
In order to apply for this grant, companies must meet the following requirements:
The product or solution that your company plans to offer must:
Additionally, your project should fall under one of the following 9 categories:
We can help apply for Startup SG Tech Not sure where to start? Or wonder what is the chance for your company to receive this grant? Real Inbound Consulting (RIC) is here to help you. With over 7 years of continued success in helping companies implement & secure grant funding for grant-supportable projects, you can count on us to be your best partner toward not only Startup SG Tech Grant, but also to achieve ultimate success in your business. Please feel free to Contact Us for free consultation! |