August 15th, 2012
Via The Financial Times, some commentary on the impact of drought and markets on food production & availability: The worst US drought in half a century is further evidence that we are in the midst of a global food crisis. In 2007-08, there were riots in more than 20 countries, as the cost of commodities […]
Read more »Hunger Wars 2012 And Beyond
August 13th, 2012
Via Mother Jones, an interesting article on how the drought and rising food costs may lead to global social unrest: The Great Drought of 2012 has yet to come to an end, but we already know that its consequences will be severe. With more than one-half of America’s counties designated as drought disaster areas, the […]
Read more »August 13th, 2012
Via Leadership, an article on the scramble for African land: Just like more than two-thirds of the human body consists of water, the earth is 75 per cent water. Land is therefore a precious finite resource that is just a quarter of the earth’s surface. No wonder it has been a source of many conflicts […]
Read more »The Global Land Rush: Catalyst For Resource-Driven Conflict?
August 3rd, 2012
Courtesy of Sustainable Security, a report on the global land rush: On May 11, the UN approved new international rules to govern how land is acquired abroad. These Voluntary Guidelines (VGs), the outcome of several years of protracted negotiations, are a response to growing global concern that nations and private investors are seizing large swaths […]
Read more »August 3rd, 2012
Via The Daily Star, news that Bangladesh will lease Sudanese farmland: Bangladesh yesterday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with South Sudan to take a 10-year lease on Sudanese farmland to grow crops aimed at ensuring food security of both the countries. Bangladesh and Sudan will jointly produce rice, lentil, oil, cotton and other crops […]
Read more »Second Scramble for Africa
July 28th, 2012
Via CNN, a report on the land grab in Africa: It is being dubbed by some as the “Second Scramble for Africa” – millions of acres of land being snapped up by companies from Asia and the Middle East. The land rush was in part spurred by the food and financial crisis of 2008, when […]
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