Community supermarket offers eligible Bedok Reservoir-Punggol residents 90% off groceries

Residents under the Bedok Reservoir-Punggol division, who hold a Blue CHAS card, can buy necessities such as toilet paper, canned food and biscuits and fork out only 10 per cent of the price.

ST PHOTO: CHONG JUN LIANG

Published Sep 05, 2026, 02:40 PM

Updated Sep 05, 2026, 02:40 PM

A community supermarket in Punggol offers Bedok Reservoir-Punggol residents with Blue CHAS cards groceries at 90% off using a $100 annual subsidy to ease living costs.

The supermarket operates every other Saturday, allowing about 3,400 eligible households to choose needed items, reducing waste and supporting vulnerable groups like single parents and the ill.

A rooftop community garden grows vegetables for free distribution, involving senior volunteers and enhancing food resilience with about 100 households benefiting weekly.

SINGAPORE - To help lower income families cope with the rising cost of living, a community supermarket at Punggol Community Club is offering eligible households groceries at a 90 per cent discount.

Residents under the Bedok Reservoir-Punggol division, who hold a Blue CHAS card, can buy necessities such as toilet paper, canned food and biscuits - and fork out only 10 per cent of the price.

The remaining 90 per cent will be deducted from a $100 subsidy given to each of these households every year. About 3,400 households qualify for the initiative.

About 200 households have bought items from the supermarket at its launch in August. The supermarket, which is manned by volunteers, will run every other Saturday for two hours in the morning .

Adrian Ang, adviser to Aljunied GRC Grassroots Organisations, said the initiative came about because residents have raised concerns about the rising cost of living.

Rather than giving households a fixed set of items, having a community supermarket lets residents choose what they need, he said, adding that it will also help to prevent wastage.

Ang, who was a PAP candidate for Aljunied GRC in the 2025 General Election, was speaking to reporters during a visit to the supermarket and a community garden on Sept 5.

He was accompanied by Defence Minister Chan Chun Sing, who is also Coordinating Minister for Public Services. Chan did not speak to the media during the visit.

Ang said he hopes the supermarket will benefit not just lower income families, but those with struggles such as single parents or young people who have illnesses.

Housewife Ong Ser Moy, 70, said she has used up the $100 subsidy over the course of two trips to the supermarket.

On Sept 5, she paid $6.80 for $68 worth of items including tissue paper, noodles, biscuits and canned food.

Ong, who lives in a four-room flat with her husband and son, said she was glad to buy groceries at an affordable price as the cost of living has gone up.

Another resident, Cindy Heng, 67, said she hopes the initiative will reduce her spending on groceries - she now spends about $200 to $300 a month on groceries for her household of three.

“I will be coming back to buy tissue, soap and milo,” added the housewife.

Ang and Chan also visited a community garden at the rooftop of a multi-storey car park in Block 465A Upper Serangoon Road, where volunteers have been growing vegetables such as chye sim, nai bai and bok choy.

About 40kg to 50kg of vegetables are harvested every week and are free for residents to collect. Some are also distributed to kindergartens.

Coordinating Minister for Public Services and Defense Minister Chan Chun Sing (right) and Dr Adrian Ang, adviser to Aljunied GRC GROs, touring the community garden on Sept 5. ST PHOTO: CHONG JUN LIANG

Coordinating Minister for Public Services and Defense Minister Chan Chun Sing (right) and Dr Adrian Ang, adviser to Aljunied GRC GROs, touring the community garden on Sept 5.

Ang said he hopes the initiative will enhance food resilience within the community. About 100 households have turned up to collect the produce every week, he noted.

Volunteer Robin Ngo, 61, said it was rewarding to see families collecting the vegetables as volunteers put in a lot of effort to grow them since the garden started in December 2025.

The garden has about 30 volunteers - most of whom are seniors - who help with gardening for about two hours every week, he said.

“Gardening helps to keep the seniors healthy and on their feet, and the produce benefits the community as a whole,” said the part-time IT consultant.

Isabelle Liew is a journalist at The Straits Times. She covers housing issues in Singapore, with a focus on public housing.

勿洛蓄水池-榜鹅区居民，持有蓝色 CHAS 卡，可以购买卫生纸、罐头食品和饼干等必需品，只需支付原价的 10%。

《海峡时报》照片：梁崇俊

发布于2026年9月5日下午2:40

更新于2026年9月5日下午2:40

榜鹅的一家社区超市为勿洛蓄水池-榜鹅居民提供蓝卡 CHAS 卡，居民可享受 100 新元的年度补贴，以 90% 的折扣购买食品杂货，从而减轻生活成本。

这家超市每隔一个星期六营业，大约有 3400 个符合条件的家庭可以挑选所需的物品，从而减少浪费，并支持单亲父母和病人等弱势群体。

屋顶社区花园种植蔬菜免费分发，老年志愿者参与其中，增强了粮食自给能力，每周约有 100 户家庭受益。

新加坡——为了帮助低收入家庭应对不断上涨的生活成本，榜鹅民众俱乐部的一家社区超市为符合条件的家庭提供90%的食品杂货折扣。

勿洛蓄水池-榜鹅区居民，持有蓝色 CHAS 卡，可以购买卫生纸、罐头食品和饼干等必需品，只需支付原价的 10%。

剩余的90%将从每年发放给每户家庭的100美元补贴中扣除。大约有3400户家庭符合这项计划的资格。

这家超市自8月份开业以来，已有约200户家庭购买了商品。该超市由志愿者运营，每隔一个星期六上午营业两小时。

阿裕尼集选区基层组织顾问 Adrian Ang 表示，这项倡议的出台是因为居民们对不断上涨的生活成本表示担忧。

他表示，与其给每户人家提供固定数量的商品，不如设立社区超市，让居民选择他们需要的商品，这也有助于防止浪费。

曾代表人民行动党参加 2025 年大选阿裕尼集选区的洪先生，于 9 月 5 日在参观超市和社区花园时接受了记者的采访。

陪同他访问的有国防部长兼公共服务统筹部长陈振声。访问期间，陈振声没有接受媒体采访。

Ang表示，他希望这家超市不仅能让低收入家庭受益，还能让单亲父母或患病的年轻人等有困难的人受益。

70岁的家庭主妇王思梅表示，她两次去超市购物就用完了100美元的补贴。

9月5日，她花了6.80美元购买了价值68美元的物品，包括卫生纸、面条、饼干和罐头食品。

Ong和她的丈夫、儿子住在一套四房式组屋里，她说，由于生活成本上涨，她很高兴能以实惠的价格买到杂货。

另一位居民，67岁的辛迪·亨表示，她希望这项举措能够减少她在食品杂货上的支出——她现在每月要为她三口之家花费大约200到300美元的食品杂货。

“我还会回来买纸巾、肥皂和美禄，”这位家庭主妇补充道。

Ang 和 Chan 还参观了上实龙岗路 465A 座多层停车场屋顶上的社区花园，志愿者们在那里种植了菜心、白菜和小白菜等蔬菜。

每周大约收获40至50公斤蔬菜，居民可以免费领取。部分蔬菜还会分发给幼儿园。

公共服务统筹部长兼国防部长陈振声（右）与阿裕尼集选区政府代表顾问洪志强医生于9月5日参观社区花园。（海峡时报摄影：庄俊良）

9月5日，公共服务统筹部长兼国防部长陈振声（右）和阿裕尼集选区政府代表顾问洪志强博士参观社区花园。

Ang表示，他希望这项举措能够增强社区的粮食安全保障。他指出，每周约有100户家庭前来领取农产品。

61岁的志愿者Robin Ngo表示，看到各个家庭前来采摘蔬菜，感到非常欣慰，因为自2025年12月菜园开办以来，志愿者们付出了很多努力来种植这些蔬菜。

他说，花园里大约有 30 名志愿者——其中大部分是老年人——他们每周大约花两个小时帮忙打理花园。

这位兼职IT顾问说：“园艺有助于老年人保持健康和行动自如，而且收获的农产品也有益于整个社区。”

Isabelle Liew是《海峡时报》的记者，主要报道新加坡的住房问题，尤其关注公共住房。