Al Dahra Agriculture, a private-sector partner of the UAE Government in securing key food staples, is targeting investments in coffee and sugar plantations in Brazil, Colombia and Chile, said the company's vice chairman.

As well as plans to build silos to store key commodities, the Government's approach includes partnering private sector players such as Al Dahra Agriculture to secure overseas land.

Global rules for investment in agriculture need to be overhauled, Sultan Al Mansouri, the UAE Minister of Economy, said yesterday, as signs emerge of rising barriers to the flow of investment around the world.

Hesham Al Shirawi, Chairman of Economic Zones World, mooted the idea of establishing free zones for agri-business in Africa during the Africa Global Business Forum 2013. The establishment of corn farms is also a lucrative business proposition, he added.

Pressed on which countries in Africa would be suitable food sources, Hisham Abdullah Al Shirawi, the chairman of Economic Zones World, says the test would be countries where water was in abundance and which were not spoilt by strife.

"The UAE is looking not just at land [acquisitions] but developing the whole supply chain," says Nicholas Lodge, managing partner at Clarity, a consultancy that advises on investments in agricultural industries.

New Zealand Minister of Foreign Affairs says his country can be a logical partner for resource-rich Gulf countries as a producer of food in places like Africa, where experts say half of the potential agricultural land is under-utilised.

The intended aim is to meet Abu Dhabi's vision and strategy for long-term food security.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan will become a majority owner of eight Serbian agriculture corporations that own 9,000 hectares of land and will lease an additional 14,000 hectares of arable land in Serbia for EUR 250 per hectare per year.

Dubai-based AWGAL Investments is in advanced talks with farmers in Texas to invest in cattle farms to produce Halal-certified US beef for the GCC and MENA region.

A 20,000 ha tranche of Serbian farmland bought by an Abu Dhabi firm should be providing a substantial amount of the UAE's food within the next five years.

Abu Dhabi's Al Dahra Agricultural Company is to develop 9,000 hectares of farmland in Serbia as it seeks to bolster food security in the UAE.