Increasing interest in science-backed ingredients positions Singapore as a key gateway for European dairy innovation in Southeast Asia
Singapore, May 2026 – The European Union is strengthening its engagement with Singapore as a regional hub for advanced food manufacturing and nutrition innovation. This comes as demand for functional dairy ingredients accelerates across Southeast Asia.
Led by Bord Bia – The Irish Food Board, the initiative is part of the “European Dairy: Ireland, Where Nature Meets Science” campaign, a €3.2 million investment co-funded by the European Union to strengthen Asia’s nutrition pipeline and foster long-term trade partnerships. The campaign showcases sustainable farming and scientific research behind European dairy production.
Singapore is a strategic gateway for functional nutrition in Asia
Singapore is globally recognised as a hub for innovation, positioned at the heart of Southeast Asia’s food ecosystem, and has an important role in regional product development and distribution. Manufacturers across Asean are increasingly seeking high-quality science-backed ingredients, as demand for targeted life-stage nutrition, preventative health products and functional foods is increasing. This is largely driven by the fact that Southeast Asia’s population is growing and ageing rapidly, particularly in Singapore, leading to increased demand for functional foods to support healthy ageing and overall well-being. Given limited domestic dairy production in Singapore, F&B innovators and manufacturers are driven to rely on imports and seek trusted international partners.
Ms. Lorna Allen, South East Market Manager of Bord Bia, mentioned, “Singapore is a key gateway for European dairy engagement in Southeast Asia, particularly as demand for functional and science-backed nutrition continues to grow. Ireland has exported €276 million value of dairy products to Southeast Asia in 2025, a y-o-y increase of 16.4 per cent. Through the EU-funded campaign, Bord Bia is supporting closer collaboration between European dairy producers from Ireland and regional food and nutrition innovators.”
Dr Kalpana Bhaskaran, Deputy Director, Industry Partnerships and Head, Glycemic Index Research Unit at Temasek Polytechnic, commented, “Dairy ingredients play a vital role across the life course. With protein‑fortified and functional dairy products gaining strong momentum, the opportunity to improve population health through evidence‑based dairy innovation has never been greater.”
A science-led advantage supporting industry needs
European dairy from Ireland combines a natural grass-fed, pasture-based system with the support of advanced scientific research. This combination of natural production methods and scientific validation allows European dairy to meet the performance and quality requirements of manufacturers across Asia.
Dr. André Brodkorb, Senior Researcher, Teagasc Food Research Centre Moorepark, said, “Irish grass‑fed milk is scientifically proven to deliver superior nutritional benefits, with Teagasc research showing dairy cows who operate on an Irish grass-fed system, produced milk with higher percentages of omega-3 and conjugated linoleic (CLA) fatty acids compared to cows fed medium and low proportions of grass.”
European dairy powders at FHA Singapore 2026
Bord Bia brought leading European dairy suppliers from Ireland to Food & Hospitality Asia (FHA) in Singapore last April. Industry professionals attending FHA Singapore were invited to explore partnership opportunities and discover how European dairy from Ireland is supporting the next generation of nutrition solutions in Asia. Bord Bia focused on:
- Functional dairy ingredients designed for sports nutrition, healthy ageing, life-stage nutrition, and foodservice.
- Solutions that support product innovation for Asian consumers.
- Opportunities to connect directly with suppliers for sourcing and collaboration.
Strengthening collaboration across the region
As part of the European Union’s engagement in Singapore, Bord Bia is also facilitating a closed-door industry session bringing together stakeholders from research, development, and manufacturing. This reflects ongoing collaboration between European dairy stakeholders and regional partners, including organisations such as Temasek and Teagasc, to support innovation and knowledge exchange in functional nutrition. More information about the campaign is available at: https://european-dairy.eu/
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