Romania

In Romania traditional livelihoods and rare animal species are about to give way to a bizarre, private project to introduce American buffalo. It's part of a rural exodus, and EU law will make future land grabs even easier.

Changes to the law in Romania will prevent individuals from owning more than 100 hectares of unincorporated farmland and will oblige them to show proof of agricultural knowledge and experience.

Selon l’association roumaine EcoRuralis, plus de 700.000 hectares, soit 6,5 % des terres arables du pays, seraient déjà aux mains de compagnies du Qatar, d’Arabie Saoudite ou de Grande-Bretagne.

“Buyers are interested in large surfaces located in a single region with as high a consolidation level as possible, with access to the water supply and irrigation infrastructure"

Nouvel épisode à rebondissement pour Charles Beigbeder. L'homme d'affaires a annoncé, vendredi 3 mai, qu'il associait ses fermes en Ukraine à celles de son concurrent Harmelia, contrôlé par un fonds américain, le texan SigmaBleyzer.

Des paysans d'Ecoruralis dénoncent la mainmise des sociétés multinationales sur près d'un million de terres arables, soit 6% des superficies cultivables roumaines.

ARC2020 is organising a 10-day EU-wide Speakers’ Tour on Landgrabbing in Romania from 21-30 April

Farmland prices are firming across much of Central and Eastern Europe, as interest from institutional investors -- mainly pension funds -- begins to translate into transactions on the ground.

The potential for investment in Eastern European agricultural land is gaining more and more attention. Information is being dug up by individual commercial investment organizations to make investment moves.

UK farm management company Velcourt Group said it’s planning to invest in farmland in Romania in a joint venture with Mintridge International.

Britain's biggest farm management company is branching out into agricultural investment in Romania, believing eastern Europe offers far more fertile opportunities than those at home.

Governments in a number of countries are trying to address concerns about land grabbing by closing their borders to foreign investors. Are these restrictions effective? Not really, says GRAIN.