Have you visited the Pasir Panjang Wholesale Centre, located south of the West Coast Highway (yes, that means it’s in the western part of Singapore)?
This vibrant hub is famous for its bustling morning activities, serving as Singapore’s main distribution point for a wide variety of exotic and freshly imported fruits, vegetables, and dried goods! My parents often took me there when I was younger, and now it’s my turn to take my children on an adventure to explore this fascinating place.
We visited during the day when the pace is more relaxed than in the bustling hours between midnight and 6 a.m.
I know, right? It’s a challenge to get the kids to stay up that late!
Maybe we’ll give it a try one day. For now, our daytime visit to the centre was engaging enough to capture the attention of the two little ones. Our first stop was a dried goods store, where the children were captivated by all the unique items stored and displayed in boxes. It was a stark contrast to shopping malls, where everything is neatly arranged on shelves and stands.
I began explaining to them what those items were, but to be honest, I wasn’t entirely sure how some of the foods were used or their specific purposes.
Fortunately, we were blessed with a friendly uncle who came to our rescue—the store owner himself!
He was incredibly patient, answering all the questions the smarties had for him. Best of all, they got to touch, feel, smell, and even taste some of the foods there. It was amazing how all our senses were engaged by just this one store! As a result, the children’s grandparents ended up buying several products from him. After all, good service leads to good business, right?
Next, while we were walking along to explore further, a snack store caught smarties’ attention. They went over to explore and checked out the different types of snacks that the store provides. It was managed by a young guy and he was really good with the children. He explained what those snacks were and gave them samples to try too! Now is the mommy’s turn to spent on the snacks for the kids. *Ouch!*
Enough of food tasting! We headed to another section where they sell fresh vegetables. Although most of the vegetables were known to smarties, but it amazes them at how people work there. They got to see and learn how the vegetables are packed and delivered to the market. There were many forklifts chugging past us at the same time, with boxes and crates of fresh vegetables to be delivered to supermarkets.
They even found some enormous size vegetables too which you can’t really find it in supermarkets. Lots of touched and feel senses to be explored here as well except for tasting though!
Finally, we made our way to the fruit section. We were amazed by the abundance of boxes and the vast array of food each store had. The children also had the opportunity to observe how goods are delivered between the stores and the trucks or lorries, as well as the interactions and negotiations between sellers and buyers.
We didn’t get to taste anything here as well but we do get to touch and feel the fruits. Check out the size of the jackfruit! The smell was so strong that we could smell it before we see it.
The educational trip to Pasir Panjang Wholesale Centre was definitely worthwhile. The kids witnessed firsthand how people loaded vegetables and fruits onto lorries and experienced the lively negotiations among various groups, something you simply don’t see in shopping malls or supermarkets. The smarties had a fantastic time learning and exploring with real-life experiences, rather than just through books, TV, or YouTube.
Next time, I hope to bring them here in the early morning hours before the hustle and bustle winds down around 5 AM, so they can truly experience the vibrant energy of the market. It’s the best way to learn outside the classroom—don’t you agree?
Here’s the address of Pasir Panjang Wholesale Market, do make a visit with your child and explore how a “market works”, even adults can learn a great deal too!
Address: 1 Wholesale Centre, Singapore 110001 | Phone: 1800 866 3077
Opening hours: 24 hours
Disclaimer: This is not a paid post. Any views or opinions represented in this blog are personal and belong solely to the blog owner and do not represent those of people, institutions or organizations that the owner may or may not be associated with in professional or personal capacity, unless explicitly stated. Everything written here is based on our own experiences.
Interesting! The next best thing to seeing these vegetables and fruits in their natural state in a farm is to see it at the wholesale market!
How big was that jackfruit?! I’ve never been to Pasir Panjang Wholesale Market. Seems like an interesting place to take the kids and get some shopping done.
Interesting experience, do they sell any organics at Pasir Panjang? (just curious).
I suspect my kids will spend most of their time at the snack section!
Can get them tor try Jurong Fishery Port next (but only after midnight), then they can see huge amount of seafood consumed by Singaporeans!
(can perhaps relate how Global fish stocks are being depleted due to over harvesting)
cheers, Andy
(SengkangBabies.com)
What a unique experience it is for the kids the whole family I’m sure. Nothing beats the authentic experience of seeing (and touching ) these fruits and veggies in their pre-NTUC stage. Good posts! Thanks for sharing!
Wow, this is definitely a step up from the local wet market experience!