A PERCEPTION STUDY OF URBAN FARMING IN HOMES

Abstract

As many global issues such as climate change and the COVID-19 pandemic begin to affect food supply chain globally, there is an impending need for Singapore to become self-reliant on its food supplies. With land scarcity, there is little land left for agriculture development in Singapore. Hence, the study investigates into the potential of integrating urban farms into the homes of Singaporeans, namely in HDBs. A perception study is conducted to gain respondents’ opinions and investigate relevant factors that will affect their willingness to adopt (WTA) an urban farm in their homes. Factors include socio-demographic factors and other external factors, such as the constructs of Social Cognitive Theory (SCT). This study also investigates what kind of urban farm design appeals the most to the respondent. Key findings of the study found that age, level of education (LOE), household size and perceived barriers do not significantly impact the WTA of respondents and females’ WTA is not significantly higher than males. Meanwhile, income level, perceived importance of food sustainability and outcome expectations significantly impact the WTA of respondents. The study is significant due to the lack of perception studies regarding urban farms in Singapore, let alone urban farming (UF) in homes. Hence, it provides a new foundation for future researchers to build upon and key decision makers to decide on the best way to promote UF in Singapore and address common concerns of the public.