Singapore unveiled a major overhaul of its aquaculture sector Tuesday (Nov. 19), introducing measures to boost domestic fish production and tighten environmental controls, reports Straits Times.

The Singapore Aquaculture Plan, first introduced in 2022, will now establish a National Broodstock Centre to reduce dependence on imported fish eggs and fingerlings while opening export channels to China for six commercial species, including red snapper and Asian seabass.

Under the plan, farmers will be able to, for a period, tap the intellectual property of new solutions or research developed under the agri-food AquaPolis research initiative for free.

The plan replaces traditional capacity limits with real-time nutrient discharge monitoring to prevent harmful algal blooms. It comes as local production meets just 7.3% of Singapore's seafood needs, with sea-based farm numbers declining to 74 operations.

"We are particularly vulnerable to global food supply disruptions," said senior minister of state Koh Poh Koon.