Singapore-based vertical farm GroGrace set to close

GroGrace, a Singapore-based vertical farming company, has announced that it will cease operations. The announcement was made by Grace Lim, founder and CEO of the company, in a video message shared on social media.

In the video, Grace Lim confirms that the farm will officially close its doors on 14 February. She explains that while the farm performed well from a cultivation and technical perspective, the commercial side of the business proved unsustainable under current market conditions. Grace has previously shared her thoughts on the challenges of indoor farming in Singapore with VerticalFarmDaily in October 2022.

Back in 2022, Grace noted, "Unfortunately, at this point, the market can only absorb a small part of local produce. Therefore, we can only really change the game if the government would cut some percentage of imports, and in return, it should come from local farms. Then, we're talking. If not right now, local farms are competing amongst us. The market forces are not favorable to any local farms. Even worse for hi-tech farms." And it has been proven...

According to a Singapore-based supplier, the main challenge was not growing the crops, but selling them in a market where imported vegetables are priced significantly lower than locally produced alternatives.

GroGrace was developed as a high-tech indoor farm through a collaboration between Priva, Signify, and Dry Hydroponics. The facility served as a showcase for advanced climate control, lighting, and hydroponic cultivation systems, demonstrating that consistent, high-quality production can be achieved in a controlled environment. The facility is 720 square meters, and produces lettuce and kale pesto, amongst other products.

© GroGrace

Grace expresses gratitude to all stakeholders involved in the project, thanking partners, suppliers, customers, and supporters for their cooperation and commitment throughout the journey of building and operating the farm.

Despite the closing of GroGrace, and other vertical farms in Singapore, Greenphyto has recently opened a large, mid-automated facility in Singapore and aims to serve the market for the coming years at decent pricing. Greenphyto operates a five-storey, fully automated indoor vertical farm in West Singapore. The S$80 million facility is 2 hectares and will produce up to 2,000 tonnes of leafy greens per year, with current output at around 200 tonnes.

The farm grows kailan, leaf lettuce, Japanese chye sim, baby spinach, and arugula, sold under the Hydrogreens brand at 95 supermarkets, including FairPrice and Sheng Siong. Prices include S$3.95 for a 200g pack of kailan and S$3.20 for a 100g pack of leaf lettuce. Given the local crop focus, hopefully, this business model will sustain.