SAFETY AND QUALITY UNCERTAINTIES IN FOOD INPORT AND CONSUMPTION: THE CASE OF SINGAPORE.

The city-state of Singapore, a rich and highly urbanized country, has exponen-tially developed its economy in recent decades, driven mainly by financial ser-vices, manufacturing and tourism. As the country is highly dependent on food imports, it therefore presents unique challenges in terms of food safety and mi-crobial quality. In these terms, its laws also focus on ensuring a constant foreign supply of food and agricultural products that are safe for the population and be-yond. Despite the efforts of the Singapore Ministry of Health, in collaboration with other authorities, which actively collaborate to promote safety, food-borne diseases continue to be a serious public health problem. This paper contains a preliminary analysis of the city-state of Singapore, outlin-ing its profile mainly in the food field. After an initial survey of the most im-ported and consumed food products, we analyse the causes that have seen an increase of food contamination and food poisoning, with a view to what may be the possible solutions proposed by the Singaporean authorities. The paper con-cludes with an analysis of future food scenario, with indication of the potential investments that can be made, especially with increasingly sustainable solutions, according to a different and continuous evolution of the population.