ScandAsia Singapore - July 2014

JUL

2014

ScandAsia.dk ScandAsia.fi ScandAsia.no ScandAsia.se

Singapore

Unlocking the powers

of microbial biofilms

Edison was one of the world’s most prolific inventors with over 1,000 patents! At Stamford, the next big idea could be MY OWN! We have a state-of-the-art Science Wing that I use to experiment with new ideas that has a break-out space for hypothesizing, lab space for experimenting and presentation space for sharing my findings!

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ScandAsia is the only magazine that covers all the Danish, Finnish, Norwegian and Swedish residents in Singapore.

We also publish a ScandAsia maga-zine in China, Thailand, and the rest of South East Asia.

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Get your own FREE copy: scandasia.com

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Coming Events

Singapore’s love affair with food is one that knows no boundaries. First launched in 1994, the annual Singapore Food Festival is a platform that celebrates the heart and soul of our gastronomic diversity. The festival offers a unique opportunity for visitors to get acquainted with local food in both traditional and contemporary ways.

Art Apart Fair18 to 20 July 2014Venue: Parkroyal on Pickering Hotel

Designed to bring contemporary art to a worldwide audience, this biennial international art fair, which also takes place in January, features over 2,000 artworks in a more intimate and unconventional setting – namely, the Parkroyal on Pickering hotel’s guest rooms, suites and lobby – in an effort for collectors to visualise artworks in a more private, home-like setting. In addition to an auction, the programme includes artist talks and performances.

Aquatic adventure park for the familyOpen: 10am – 6pmResorts World Sentosa, check the website for directions www.rwsentosa.com

Promising endless splashes of fun, Adventure Cove Waterpark is an aquatic adventure park with something for everyone. Feel the adrenaline rush as you zoom down thrilling waterslides such as Southeast Asia’s first hydro-magnetic coaster. Chill out with friends at Bluwater Bay wave pool, or grab a tube and journey down Adventure River, passing through 14 stunning scenes including a tropical jungle garden and

a grotto inhabited by whimsical sea creatures. Snorkel over a colourful coral reef with 20,000 friendly fish or wade amongst dozens of rays as you touch their velvety wings. For a day of wet and wild fun in the sun, come and experience it all at Adventure Cove Waterpark.

For locals and tourists alike, the Singapore Food Festival truly encapsulates the diversity of the city’s delectable eats. Be it paying homage to culinary traditions or discovering a growing pool of talent that explores creative ways to interpret familiar flavours, immersing yourself in the local food scene is an experience not to be missed.

Singapore Food Fest 2014Where: Marina Bay Sands and other locations, www.singaporefoodfestival.comWhen: from 11 to 20 July 2014

Farewell to Eva Maria Jansvik at Norwegian Seamen’s Church

Sunday, June 8, the day of the pentecost-service at the Norwegian Seaman’s Church, also the marked the farewell to reverend Eva

Marie Jansvik and her husband, day to day church-conductor Martin Jansvik.

Eva Marie Jansvik was grateful for the years spend at the Church in such an exotic place in the world.

“There has never been a dull moment during these three and half years in Singapore. It’s been an exciting experience with many meaningful tasks, and my job has led me to meetings with so many lovely and interesting people. I’ve enjoyed my work very much, and I feel privileged to have had the opportunity to live in such an interest-ing and exotic part of the world. I’ve loved the climate, and will definitely miss the summer tem-peratures. Still, what I’ll miss the most, are all my wonderful colleagues and friends.” she said.

News Brief

Eva Marie Jansvik and her husband Martin Jansvik came to Singapore with one daughter, which is now six years old. During their time in Southeast Asian metropol they expanded the family with further three boys, a three year old and twin ba-bies born three months ago.

“We are moving back to our little hometown, Mandal, which is the most southern town in Nor-way. I will work as a reverend there in the Nor-wegian Church when I finish my maternity leave. We are very much looking forward to letting our children grow up with their grandparents around and living in this beautiful small town by the coast.

We are grateful for the years in Singapore. Both my husband and I have found our jobs at the Norwegian and Swedish Church very meaningful. It’s been challenging, there’s been ups and downs, but it’s also been a lot of fun,” she emphasized

Kongsberg Norcontrol IT will lead a ground-breaking three-year project called SESAME Straits (Secure, Efficient and Safe maritime

traffic Management in the Straits of Malacca and Singapore), which aims to create solutions to sig-nificantly improve the safety and efficiency of ship navigation across the world. An important test-bed for IMO’s e-Navigation implementation strategy, the objective of the SESAME Straits Project is to develop and validate a revolutionary concept for a next generation Ship Traffic Management System (STMS) in the Straits of Malacca and Singapore (SOMS).

Kongsberg raises bar on ship traffic management

Partly funded by the Research Council of Nor-way, through its Marine and Offshore (MAROFF) fund, the NOK 23 Million SESAME Straits project is the first project to be delivered under the inter-national Straits e-navigation Alliance. The Kongs-berg Norcontrol IT-owned project will receive input and guidance from the Straits e-navigation Alliance High Level Advisory Board (HLAB) who met in London on the 16th May 2014. The HLAB includes governmental members from Singapore, Norway, Malaysia and Indonesia and experts from important maritime organizations such as IMO, IHO, IALA, ICS, BIMCO, CIRM, IEC, and the Research Council of Norway. The HLAB is co-chaired by Norway and Singapore.

Finland releases international football match-fixer

Notorious football match-fixer Wilson Raj Perumal has been released from police custody, after the District Court of Van-

taa on 28 May sentenced him to a three-month probation order for border offence and forgery.

Perumal was released because Singaporean au-thorities, despite issuing a warrant for his arrest, never requested for his extradition.

Perumal was taken into custody in Helsinki on 16 April on the international arrest warrant issued by Singaporean authorities. The Finnish Ministry of Justice gave Singapore 30 days to request for the extradition of Perumal, but the request was never submitted and he was consequently never extradited to his home country.

July 2014 • ScandAsia.Singapore 5

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Nordea Bank S.A, Singapore Branch is part of Nordea Group, the leading financial services group in the Nordic and Baltic Sea regions. Some products and services may, due to local regulations, not be available to individuals resident in certain countries and their availability may depend, among other things, on the investment risk profile of persons in receipt of this publication or on any legislation to which they are subject. Noth-ing in this publication should be construed as an offer, or the solicitation of an offer, to purchase, subscribe to or sell any investment or product, or to engage in any other transaction or provide any kind of financial or banking service in any jurisdiction where Nordea Bank S.A., Singapore Branch or any of its affiliates do not have the necessary licence. Published by Nordea Bank S.A., R.C.S. Luxembourg No. B 14.157 on behalf of Nordea Bank S.A., Singapore Branch, 3 Anson Rd #20-01, Springleaf Tower, Singapore 079909. www.nordeaprivatebanking.com subject to the supervision of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (www.mas.gov.sg).

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News Brief

Surgeons Mikael Hartman and Philip Lau have finally arrived in Stockholm, after a 20,000 km motorcycle journey that took them across

17 countries.

The two professors from the National University of Singapore (NUS) started to ride their motor-cycles from Singapore to Sweden in March in the name of breast cancer research and education.

Clinical Associate Professor Philip Lau and Asso-ciate Professor Mikael Hartman from the surgery department at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medi-cine aim was to raise awareness about breast cancer issues in developing countries. They were

Photo credit: Karolinska Institutet

Singapore-Sweden motorbike campaigncompleted

also raising funds for research into the disease, which has been the most common cancer among females in Singapore. In the last four decades, 60 women out of every 100,000 each year have been diagnosed with the cancer.

The trip, called The Long Ride, concluded on June 19, covered 17 countries and more than 23,000km. The two surgeons stopped to con-duct lectures, surgical demonstrations and public health symposiums in many cities along the way.

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Singapore is an example of how water scarcity has led to the development of sustainable water technology in Asia. That’s why a Danish watertech center has now opened its doors in this tiny island nation to showcase what Denmark has to offer and to establish a foothold in fast-growing Asia.

On June 8, a Danish watertech showroom was opened by visiting Danish Minister of Environment, Kirsten Brosbøl, who said the timing was right for Denmark to explore business opportunities in Singapore, China and other Asian countries.

Danish watertech center opens in Singapore

Singapore was chosen because the country is already an Asian regional hub for water technology. “There is a big demand for this kind of technology that can clean wastewater, prevent flooding and predict rises in sea water in Asia. Therefore it is important that Danish companies with this expertise makes their presence felt in this part of the world. Other countries already have set eyes on Singapore, because, like Denmark, they are skilled in water technology,” Kirsten Brosbøl said in a press release. In 2012 the Danish exports in water technology amounted to 15 billion kroner equivalent to 3.43 billion Singapore dollars. The Danish Water Technology House in Singapore was set up by the self-financed national center for water environment, Ferskvandscentret. According to the center, more than half a billion people in Asia still do not have access to clean drinking water while 90 per cent of all waste water in the region are still not being treated. These statistics indicate that there is a huge business potential for Danish watertech companies.The Danish Minister of Environment believes it is also interesting to observe how Singapore is dealing with challenges associated with water scarcity and management. “Even though we in Denmark are frontrunners in water technology, we can also learn things from Singapore. Their population lives in an area the size of Bornholm, so they obviously have valuable experience making the best of out of their very limited resources. At the same time, like us, they have positive results with regulations leading to new sustainable technology and growth,” Kirsten Grosbøl underlined.

Saxo Bank Group

Saxo Capital Markets is a Singapore subsidiary of Saxo Bank A/S, a Danish investment bank specialising in international capital markets.

Saxo Bank A/S, the parent company of Saxo Capital Markets Pte Ltd, the on-line trading and investment specialist, is expanding in the Asia-Pacific area. “Since we established Saxo Capital

Markets in Singapore almost 8 years ago, we have seen very positive growth of the retail business in Singapore. In the same period we have also established subsidiaries in Japan, Hong Kong and Australia” says Lasse Reinhold, Head of Private Client Sales in an update to ScandAsia about Saxo Bank Group’s business position in Southeast Asia. Saxo Bank Group’s form a very solid base for Saxo Bank Capital Markets’ future growth in the Asia Pacific, but Lasse Reinhold says the company would like to open branches in more places if local regulations would permit this. “In other South East Asian nations, the regulatory environment still makes it difficult for foreign financial institutions to establish themselves there. However, we are monitoring the regulatory environment in Asia with interest. Furthermore we have for the past year been using various sponsorships to help generate awareness about the Saxo brand, particularly in countries where we don’t have a local presence,” Lasse Reinhold explains.

Tradingfloor.comWhen it comes to advice on the trends in the currency market, Lasse Reinhold says he is not the right person to turn to. “I never really make comments of the markets,” he says, adding that his role has always been more in business development. “For those readers who are looking for a bit more generic information about the markets, I would like to take the opportunity to introduce Tradingfloor.com. Tradingfloor.com is a new exciting initiative by Saxo Bank Group, I guess you could call it an information portal however it does more than just that. It has articles and blogs on Forex, Equities, commodities and macro themes; packed with news, information and education. To have a look, simply visit www.tradingfloor.com.”

expanding in AsiaCustomers all over Lasse Reinhold says that Saxo Bank Group has customers all over Asia Pacific, but that a local presence makes a difference. “Naturally we have a greater platform for doing business in the countries where we have a local presence such as Singapore or Hong Kong. I guess being here just makes it easier to do business. As we are part of the Saxo Bank Group, where Saxo Bank is well known especially in Europe, this also helps us attract clients from within the European expat community.” But clients do not need a local branch to walk in - it is all online. “Opening an account with any Saxo entity is relatively easy. For Saxo Capital Markets Pte Ltd here in Singapore, we have a simple form on our

website where people can provide their contact details and submit them online. Then we will give you a follow-up call and walk you through the process of account opening.”

“Sandbox” account“Another way of getting started is by registering for what we call a demo account. We offer anyone who is interested a free no-obligation 20-day period where they can try out a demo version of our trading platform. The demo comes with all the features and products of the real live platform, you can even make trades, however it is all in a simulated environment so one does not need to worry about pressing the wrong buttons. It’s a great way to familiarize yourself with the system before deciding whether to apply for a live account. “

Lasse Reinhold, Head of Private Client Sales in Saxo Capital Markets, Singapore


The mission is to crack how to harness the powers of

microorganisms living in complex communities known as biofilm.

Once cracked, the powers can be unleashed on anything from water treatment to providing sustainable

urban ecosystems.Text and photos by Joakim Perssson

Singapore Centre on Environmental Life Sciences Engineering (SCELSE) is a first-of-its-kind research institution. Under the leadership of the Swedish-Australian professor Staffan Kjelleberg

the centre aims to be world leading in microbial biofilm research, how to harness the powers of microorganisms for environmental and water sustainability and a myriad of other purposes. SCELSE is Singapore’s 5th Research Centre of Excellence (RCE) with more than S$200 million in budget over 10 years and spreads uniquely across Singapore’s two leading universities, hosted by Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in partnership with National University of Singapore (NUS).

Largest biomass on the planetScandAsia met with Prof. Kjelleberg to discuss SCELSE’s significance and decipher the centre’s cutting edge research in layman’s terms. Prof. Kjelleberg’s own research background is in environmental microbiology and he explains how the world of microbial biofilm communities stretches to all environments and affects everything connecting to life. “Microorganisms, or microbes, are the largest biomass and activity centre on the planet. There are more and different kinds of them than anything else,” explained Prof. Kjelleberg. “They exist everywhere and affect each and every facet of our lives and the environment we live in, forming complex communities and organisations.” It is essential to understand how these complex microbial communities affect ecosystem and bioprocess functions, he explained. The approach taken by SCELSE merges the science of numerous fields and in doing so, the centre is forging the new discipline of environmental life sciences engineering (ELSE). Historically, microbial communities have been understudied because of a lack of technological sophistication that would enable more than one (usually culturable) microorganism to be investigated at any time. “The vast majority of microbes are not readily grown in the laboratory, and so our view of microbes was somewhat skewed towards those we could isolate,” he said.

Living as biofilmsHowever, recent technological developments have advanced the field significantly by enabling scientists to characterise microbes in a community, as well as the functions they perform, without the need to culture. This leap forward was enabled by two major changes, both linked to new powerful technologies and the advances in analytical bioinformatics. Firstly, following the realisation that microbes live as biofilms, there was a shift in research interests from considering single cells and individual species to investigating complex microbial consortia. We now know that the biofilm lifestyle predominates and the associated communal activities are central to all living processes and hence environmental sustainability. Secondly, the ability to sequence

Can we control microbial biofilms?

The Swedish Australian Professor Staffan Kjelleberg


uncultured microorganisms and subsequent next-generation sequencing technologies arrived. “Information obtained from these approaches has revealed whole new universes of microorganisms – the diversity of which has far exceeded our expectations,” Prof. Kjelleberg said. To use an example, SCELSE has identified more than 20000 microbial species in a used water treatment system biofilm floc community, but less than 1% of these are known to science. “We can now sequence a sample and identify who is present in a complex system. As you can imagine, it’s a big challenge to put that together mathematically and then ask the right questions to derive meaning to all that data!” said Prof. Kjelleberg. In addition to being everywhere, biofilms also share a commonality in the way their members are organised and interact, regardless of the diverse environments they inhabit. “Understanding the fundamentals of this commonality will have a follow-on effect in many applications,” Prof. Kjelleberg said.

Pushing the frontiersSCELSE is exploring the hidden powers of the biofilm mode of life and harnessing biofilm activities for novel environmental engineering. Biofilms, their manipulation and control can generate profound, long-term environmental and economic benefits, he said. “By pushing the frontiers of ELSE, we can achieve a deeper understanding of bacterial interactions in many environments,” Prof. Kjelleberg said. Biofilm research projects (both fundamental and applied) currently undertaken at SCELSE include used water treatment, the ecology of waterways, public health and medical biofilms and other critical ELSE processes in Singapore’s urban ecosystem. The research SCELSE conducts is highly interdisciplinary, involving numerous local and international collaborations with universities and industry, traversing the fields of microbiology, biology, physics, chemistry, medicine and biotechnology. This approach is essential to unravelling biofilm intricacies and reflects the way modern research is increasingly conducted.

Modern challenges to life-supporting environment The main challenges facing humankind include securing the availability of clean water and maintaining a sustainable environment. Modern urban living has disrupted the biological processes core to such systems to the level that the sustainability of a life-supporting environment is now threatened. The biological processes essential for providing clean water and a sustainable environment reside with the activities of microbial communities. As such, any long-term approaches to sustainable living must accommodate an understanding and utilisation of biofilms. “This approach is important for urban centres such as Singapore, as they prepare for future resource management and urban

planning,” said Prof. Kjelleberg. Microbial biofilms hold the key to many processes essential to urban living. For example, the collective metabolisms of microbial communities can treat wastewater for re-use, convert and remove toxic contaminants from waterways, recycle nutrients in natural ecosystems and affect the air we breathe. Alternatively, they are also implicated in negative processes such as chronic disease, contamination during food handling, slime build-up in water and industrial pipes, and corrosion of industrial surfaces. “The prevalence of biofilms in all aspects of our lives dictates the need to better understand their biology if they are to be harnessed and controlled in natural and engineered settings,” Prof. Kjelleberg said.

Life sciences transitionThe investment in SCELSE made by the Singapore government has provided the Research Centre of Excellence (RCE) with a clear mandate to incorporate Environmental Life Sciences Engineering into the Singapore research landscape. “As an autonomous RCE, SCELSE is linking Singapore’s universities, broader research infrastructure, and governmental bodies to draw upon broad ranging capacities and expertise in a coordinated and meaningful way.” “We are building excellence over a ten-year period in an area Singapore sought to pursue.” Prior to establishing SCELSE, Prof. Kjelleberg was involved in forming a smaller centre in Singapore involved in environmental microbiology research, which reflected a general push towards biotech-related microbiology. Singapore has been extraordinarily strong for a long time in biomedical research, but there was a gap in life sciences research in the non-biomedical arena,” Prof. Kjelleberg said, explaining the genesis of SCELSE. World leaders in their respective fields were recruited to head SCELSE’s interactive research clusters of Environmental Engineering, Meta-‘omics & Systems Biology, Microbial Biofilms, and Public Health & Medical Biofilms.

“These research clusters do not operate in isolation, but rather collaborate in an iterative manner to approach a research question from all angles and obtain comprehensive outputs, both fundamental and applied,” he said. “Bringing together this cohort of internationally acknowledged research directors who are recognised for their excellence in science has also precipitated the formation of a significant life sciences precinct at NTU, which is a remarkable development for a university that primarily focused on engineering.”

Singapore’s RCE concept Singapore has established RCEs to catalyse the development of local universities into research-intensive institutions with international standing, and to help establish Singapore as a leading centre for world-class research and development by attracting top-level talent from Singapore and abroad. The establishment of Singapore’s RCEs will ensure research breakthroughs and innovative technologies that will make the country a hotbed for innovation. “Singapore has made a hefty investment in research. To be given a budget of this magnitude is essentially unheard of. I cannot think of any country where there is funding at this scale to form a centre of any particular kind,” Prof. Kjelleberg said. “I think it all hangs together with Singapore’s future development. If you don’t have natural resources then you have to be clever, and foster technology – to be the best at something that is self-generated. “This is reflected in the real support Singapore has provided for research and development, including the establishment of RCEs.” “I think microbiology is moving really fast and many things have changed our way of viewing microbes, so I hope I’ll be part of the next phase of understanding biofilm biology. As SCELSE director overseeing the research centre, it is a privilege to have the opportunity and funding to gather such talented researchers under the one roof, and pioneer the new discipline of ELSE. “It is an exciting time. How often does this kind of opportunity come around?!”

It’s a question of Singapore’s future

developement . If you don’t have natural

resources then you have to be more clever.


Danish middleclass values put to test in tropical melting pot

Solen skinner aldrig på en go-go-bar (“The Sun Never Shines In a Go-Go Bar”) is the latest book by 48-year-old Danish writer Henrik List. It is a captivating, satirical contemporary

novel with crime elements, taking place in the world-famous den of iniquity, Pattaya. A setting far from the freshly painted villas and well-manicured lawns of the Danish suburbs. “It is a darkly funny, satirical take on politically correct Danish or Scandinavian middle-class values in the 21st century. More than ever we are obsessed about living the perfect life. This novels uses the unofficial free zone of Pattaya as a laboratory, into which I dump two quite different Danish guys from different generations, to see how they react, and to check how their moral values hold up in this rice steamer.” The story unfolds when a famous and internationally respected Danish artist is about to open an exhibition at the National Art Museum in Copenhagen, entitled “Go-Go-Gauguin” with references to Paul Gauguin, the french impressionist artist, who painted naked teenage girls in his colonial paradise in Tahiti. The exhibition is rumoured to feature large-scale erotic photos of underage Thai girls and quickly makes front page headlines in Denmark’s tabloids. We follow the narratives of two Danish journalists, who gets assigned to tracking down the artist in his exile, a Robinson Crusoe island near Koh si Chang in the Gulf of Thailand, close to Pattaya. Rune, the rising-star journalist and idealist, from the left-leaning morning paper, and Bob, the older hack writer who is already living in Pattaya, while freelancing for a tabloid, to make ends meet. Bob´s initially overbearing perspective is affected by his many years living in the area. Rune on the other hand is quickly overwhelmed by the many impressions in “Sin City”, and he maneuvers as elegant as he can, through a wide-range of scenes and obscurities, while dealing with dodgy police officers and alluring bar girls.

A “free city”Henrik List started visiting Pattaya at the beginning of the new century and became so

fascinated by the place that he now calls it a city that he loves. The self-governing municipality has the air of an autonomous “free city” and is a socio-cultural melting pot to boot. Here Indians, Japanese, Russians, Americans and, of course, Danes party and indulge in either the decadence of the red light districts, the high society lounges at luxury beach hotels, enjoy wellness-treatments, play golf, get tanked in beer-bars or just take care of their family in a bustling, cosmopolitan 24/7 city, where everybody can live and let live with out caring too much about what other people think about them. Henrik List sees Pattaya as an “inter-zone”, a vibrant, colorful oasis in today´otherwise more and more bland, politically correct and globalized capitalist world. The phrase was coined by William Burroughs, a famous beat-writer, to describe the Moroccan city of Tangier, back in the fifties, where all types of people from all types of places used to come and live there, giving the place a certain vibe of bohemian anarchy, sexual allure and exotic unpredictability. “There is a massive amount of prejudice about Pattaya being all about sex-tourism – stereotypes I want to trigger and challenge at the same time with the title of the novel. Of course there is some truth to the cliches, but over past fifteen years, when I have been coming here, there has been a visible paradigm shift, an upgrading of the city in all respects, and todays Pattaya is so much more than just old Western men with young Thai girls on their laps in sleazy beer-bars,” Henrik List stressed. Solen skinner aldrig på en go-go bar has been in the making for almost four years and Henrik List has done a lot of research into Thai culture, Buddhism and politics, while he has also drawn upon some invaluable local contacts both among the authorities and expat community in Pattaya.

Welfare straightjacket“One of the aspects that I find so interesting about Southeast Asian culture and Thailand in particular, is the mash-ups between the high and the low, the spiritual and the frivolous, the sacred and the commercial – for instance when

Writer Henrik List’s latest novel “Solen skinner aldrig på en go-go-bar” takes place in Pattaya. Two Danish journalists are pursuing a famous, but scandal-ridden artist far away from their native country of generous welfare and stifling conformity.

By Kristian Kruger Lauritzen


you see Buddhist monks blessing a new naughty nightclub on behalf of the temple in the same neighborhood. It would be unthinkable to see a Protestant priest praying at the opening of a bar or a nightclub in the West in the same fashion. In that sense, there is a special blend of ancient native rituals and contemporary Western pop culture in Thailand, that I personally find really cool and totally original.” Pattaya might be an extreme example of this, with the seamier side of life and pole-dancing girls that could be added to the mix. But that only makes the sea-side city an even more inspiring location and setting for a novel,

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Henrik List - here with the welknown view of Pattaya by night in the background - has been a reviewer and culture-journalist at the Danish daily Berlingske for 13 years.

Photo by Nicolas Guilbert www.guilbert.asia

where it becomes a sort of antithesis to rigid conformity of Denmark. “I am not convinced that we are as tolerant as a society anymore, as we would like to portray ourselves to be. Over the years, we have become more and more anxious and unforgiving, and if you step out of line, the system is quick to correct and discipline you. “Big Mother” – the big, complex welfare state hugs you, initially with the best intentions, but all that maternal affection and supervision – don´t smoke! don´t drink, don’t eat unhealthy food, don´t have unsafe sex! – becomes claustrophobic and too close for comfort and

ends up snuffing out your creativity and originality.” Solen skinner aldrig på en go-go-bar is the 17th book release by Henrik List and his second novel. His bibliography includes non fiction, travelogues and cultural essays, with urban life, outsiders, pop culture and sexual taboos as recurring themes.

Check out www.henriklist.dk & go to saxo.com to buy the e-book or audio-book.


Danish-inspired organic food on the riseOrganic food is attracting a lot of attention in China and elsewhere in Asia these days. Denmark, which leads the world in terms of production and consumption of organic products, welcomes this trend with open arms and considers it as a potential cash cow.

By Morten Krogsholm

The organic food industry has always enjoyed conducive market conditions in Denmark and because of this, it can expect to continue to grow in the foreseeable future. Most of the Danish organic products are consumed domestically but a substantial quantity of them is exported overseas.

Seizing the opportunityWith long experience in organic product exports, Danish producers have seized the opportunity to try to break into the Asian market. “When approached by prospective foreign clients, Danish organic com-panies respond with enthusiasm and really go all out trying to get the exports started right away,” said Helene Birk Export Manager at Organic Denmark. Though it is tough to get certified as an organic company in Denmark, this does not seem to discourage farmers or producers who seek the green path. “In China, we see a growing demand for Danish organic products. The perceived high quality can be attributed to the rigorous requirements that the Danish companies need to fulfill before being officially certified organic.


Among those requirements is absolutely no use of pesticides,” she said, add-ing that an even bigger growth in the exportation of Danish organics could be expected in the next three to five years.

Visitors from the Far EastPork, dairy products, juices and muesli are among the big-sellers in the Asian market, but the Asians also want to know how the Danes come up with products of such high quality and they often travel to Denmark to learn. Recently a business delegation from China has come for a study tour. “They include importers or store owners, who wanted to visit Danish producers as they want to source a wider range of organic products from us. But they also are curious about the Danish organic food culture,” said Helene Birk. But it is not only the Chinese who express keen interest in the Danish organic industry. Organic Denmark often hosts delegations from different countries. Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea are becoming more and more interested in importing ever expanding selection of organic food products.

When a delegation comes to Denmark, there are a wide variety of or-ganic companies to visit and see. For example, the Chinese delegation visited Arla, Friland, Gron Fokus, Norrebro Bryghus and six other companies.

Little fear of competitionThe Chinese have for a long time had a reputation for being excellent at copying. But Helene Birk from Organic Denmark does not see the exchange of knowledge as a threat. She said her organization welcomes more Asian delegations to come and see how things are run in Denmark. “It can be a positive thing for the Chinese to expand their own pro-duction of organic products. It is our impression that the Danish products have a competitive edge due to the quality of the products and the strict food safety standards required by the Danish government. Other than that, Denmark also has the ability to provide a lot of other products that cannot be grown in the East,” she said, adding that it is not too difficult to imagine Danish organic farmers moving to the East to set up their organic farms and vice versa.

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The Danish Shrimp Sandwich is a scrumptious and delicious blend of rich ingredients such as prawns, mayonnaise and eggs. The eggs, al-though optional, make an interesting addition to the sandwich and

helps put to ease a hungry tummy. Fast and easy to put together, this sandwich makes a good and filling snack to have on-the-run, especially for those who really do not have time to cook a proper meal.

Ingredients• Several slices of fresh bread • Unsalted butter • 1 head Boston or butter lettuce • Good-quality mayonnaise (about 2 tablespoons) • 6 to 8 large cooked shrimp • Thinly sliced lemon • Watercress or dill for garnish• Hard-cooked eggs Butter several slices of bread, cutting them in half if slices are very large.Place thin slices of boiled egg on one side of the bread.Top each with leafy lettuce so that it extends over sides of bread. Top the lettuce with generous lump of about one teaspoon of mayonnaise. Place two large shrimps beside each other on top of the mayonnaise so it is held in place. Put another dab of mayonnaise on top, followed by thin twist of lemon and sprig of watercress or dill for color.

Shrimp Sandwich

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Erik DahlströmManaging Director

Thailand | Singapore

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Would choosing a school for your child be easier if you could experience it firsthand? At UWCSEA, we appreciate how important this decision is. We know that it’s reassuring to experience a school in action before deciding if it is the right fit for your child.

Our open days provide an opportunity to meet Principals and teachers and observe classes. Most importantly, you can speak directly to our students about their experience at UWCSEA.

We invite you to come and see for yourself:

East Campus Primary School Monday, 15 September Middle School Wednesday, 17 September High School Thursday, 18 September

Dover Campus Primary School Monday, 22 September Middle School Wednesday, 24 September High School Tuesday, 23 September

What if your child joins UWCSEA?

Visit www.uwcsea.edu.sg to register and find out more.

…YOU COULD EXPLORE THE POSSIBILITIES?

Parent Christine takes a strategic view of the school

OPEN DAYS SEPTEMBER

2014

WHAT IF ...

139ADV-1314UWCSEA Dover is registered by the CPE CPE Registration No. 197000825H Registration Period 18 July 2011–17 July 2017 UWCSEA East is registered by the CPE CPE Registration No. 200801795N Registration Period 10 March 2011–9 March 2017

Documents

ScandAsia Singapore - July 2014