October 3rd, 2016
Via EurekAlert, a look at the impact that foreign agricultural ownership can have upon stability & security: For the first time, researchers point to areas in Africa where foreign agricultural companies’ choice of crops and management of fresh water are partly responsible for the increased water shortages and greater competition for water. This in turn[…]
Read more »Africa’s Real Land Grab
August 5th, 2016
Courtesy of The Economist, a look at the growing tendency for African urbanites to scoop up more land: AFTER half an hour poking around Martin Shem’s farm, Paul Kavishe is impressed, even a little jealous. “He has done well,” says Mr Kavishe. “He’s a real farmer!” This is strange praise, not because Mr Shem’s dairy, maize[…]
Read more »July 11th, 2016
Via Al Monitor, a report on Turkey’s interest in African farmland: When Turkey’s husbandry sector plunged into its first big crisis four years ago, the country imported thousands of sheep from France. The imports covered the meat shortage on the Turkish market and reined in the prices, while contributing to French farmers’ prosperity. The agriculture minister at the[…]
Read more »Egyptian Judge Quashes President Sisi’s Red Sea Island Deal With Saudi Arabia
June 27th, 2016
Courtesy of The Wall Street Journal, an article on the legal reversal of a decision that had sparked some of the country’s largest protests in years: An Egyptian judge quashed President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi’s agreement to cede two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia, a deal that sparked some of the country’s largest protests in years[…]
Read more »June 24th, 2016
Courtesy of Circle of Blue, a look at the impact of water scarcity on foreign land acquisitions: Tanzania’s Southern Agricultural Growth Corridor, a huge farm production project that lies across the country’s southern highlands, seems to represent incisive thinking about Africa’s potential to produce jobs and feed the world. The $US 3.4 billion project envisions[…]
Read more »A Rush of Americans, Seeking Gold in Cuban Soil
June 21st, 2016
Courtesy of the New York Times, a look at American interest in Cuba’s agricultural industry The premier organic farm in Cuba, called Finca Marta, is in the countryside, a half-hour’s drive from Havana. Some 25 different crops are grown in a system of tiered beds. The black screen protects the plants from the tropical sun.[…]
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