November 27th, 2009
Courtesy of The Economist, a review of the conflicts of scarcity and what is now referred to as the Madagascar Model and the sobering likelihood of increased pressures related to such in 2010: “…In the world’s earliest written legal code, dating from 1790BC, Hammurabi, the king of Babylon, laid down rules governing the maintenance of[…]
Read more »Does The New Global Land Rush = Agro Imperialism?
November 22nd, 2009
Courtesy of The New York Times Magazine, an interesting look at what they call agro-imperialism. As the article notes: “…Dr. Robert Zeigler, an eminent American botanist, flew to Saudi Arabia in March for a series of high-level discussions about the future of the kingdom’s food supply. Saudi leaders were frightened: heavily dependent on imports, they[…]
Read more »November 4th, 2009
Courtesy of The Guardian, a report that new guidelines are under development that could limit aggressive moves by China, South Korea and Gulf states who have been buying vast tracts of agricultural land. As the article notes: “…A scramble for African farmland has in recent years seen the equivalent of Italy’s entire arable land hoovered[…]
Read more »Private Sector/Investors: Driving The Global Farms Race
October 20th, 2009
While Africa – Asia Confidential (subscription required) is reporting that South Korea is negotiating the acquisition of 100,000 hectares of farmland with the Tanzanian government (and trying to avoid a repeat of the crisis caused when Korean conglomerate Daewoo tried to secure 1.3 million ha. of land in Madagascar last year and helped precipitate a[…]
Read more »October 12th, 2009
Via Google News, a report on the activities of Swedish company Black Earth Farming (BEF) which – since 2006 – has bought 300,000 hectares (740,000 acres) of Russian farmland. As the article notes: “…deep in the quiet, rolling landscapes of southwest Russia, it is not the seductive power of black gold that has brought foreign[…]
Read more »Corporate Agriculture In Pakistan
October 8th, 2009
Courtesy of Desertification, an interesting summary of the politics of perceived agricultural “land grabs” in Pakistan. As the report notes: “…One of the lingering effects of the food price crisis of 2007–08 on the world food system is the proliferating acquisition of farmland in developing countries by other countries seeking to ensure their food supplies.[…]
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