Residents can expect a more consistent quality in budget meals as HDB coffee shop operators and stallholders receive more rental support. 

Announcing updates to the budget meal initiative on Saturday (Jan 10), the housing board said that it will provide enhanced support for operators and stallholders to keep the initiative sustainable while meeting residents' essential needs. 

Under the refined scheme, which takes effect immediately, participating coffee shop operators are required to provide three meal options. 

They must offer one economy rice option with one meat and two vegetables, one halal option and a breakfast option, as well as two budget drinks.

Previously, operators had to provide two to six budget meals and two budget drinks.

This refinement comes after a standardisation of the budget meal requirements as well as feedback from residents about the uneven quality of budget meals and inconsistent portion sizes, said HDB. 

While the housing board does not set the prices, budget meals are typically offered at around $3.50 and around $1.20 for budget drinks.

Lower-income households who require further assistance with cooked food may tap on community initiatives offered by grassroots organisations and charities.

More support for coffee shops

To enhance financial support for coffee shop operators and stallholders, HDB said it will extend the five per cent rental discount from the current one-year period to the full three-year tenancy term. 

This applies to newly-let and existing rental coffee shops when they commence or renew their tenancies, if they choose to offer budget meals.

Existing rental coffee shops that are already offering budget meals under existing requirements will automatically receive the discount for the rest of their current tenancy term. 

Meanwhile, privately-owned HDB coffee shops participating in the budget meal initiative will receive financial support through a discount on the temporary occupation licence (TOL) fees for their outdoor refreshment area.

This discount will be equivalent to five per cent of the assessed market rent of the coffee shop over a three-year period, capped at 100 per cent of the TOL fee. 

Coffee shop operators who sign up for the initiative must pass on rental discounts in full to tenants providing budget meals, or risk getting them clawed back.

"Under this new arrangement, operators can decide whether to participate in the budget meal initiative, in exchange for the rental discounts or TOL fee discounts," HDB said.

Participation will no longer be mandatory — a shift from the previous policy that all HDB coffee shops must provide budget meals.

These revisions come after operators and stallholders shared concerns that the scheme was not sustainable due to rising costs and low take-up rates. 

Introduced in 2018, the budget meal initiative was designed to provide affordable meal and drink options for residents.

There are 350 HDB rental coffeeshops and 48 privately-owned HDB coffeeshops offering budget meals, as of Dec 31, 2025.

Speaking to the media on Saturday, owner of De Tian coffee shop Glenn Koh shared why he has chosen to continue participating in the budget meal initiative.

Besides playing his part in helping others as a coffee shop operator, he welcomes the enhanced financial support from the government.

"We are running a business and overheads are rising. The extension of the five per cent rental discount is the deciding factor of whether we'll continue [participating]," said the 55-year-old.

The coffee shop chain has 15 HDB rental coffee shops, all of which are taking part in the budget meal initiative.

If any of them were to opt out of the scheme, the coffee shop will still provide affordable economy rice, which he noted as the most popular budget meal option.

When asked about the challenges of providing budget meals at coffee shops, Glenn said budget drinks are the "most challenging" to offer due to the sales volume. 

Patrons typically order coffee or tea, both of which are required options under the scheme.

Budget meals, on the other hand, are more manageable. As the demand for them is relatively low, they have minimal impact on revenue.

"The take-up rate by stallholders is not high, so it's not really an issue for them," he said, adding that not having a price cap on the budget meals also helps.

carol.ong@asiaone.com