Southeast Asian countries took big steps towards formalizing food-for-oil deals with Gulf states at a June meeting between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the Gulf Cooperation Council.
Because of the political sensitivity of the modern-day land grab, it is often only the country's head of state who knows the details. Der Spiegel investigates.
“It is the height of stupidity for our country to bargain our lands for the sake of other nation’s food security, while being dependent on importation for our very own food security needs,” says Rafael Mariano
"While participating in farmer meetings in Mali recently, I heard about the so-called land grabs first-hand. Libya will use its wealth of petro-dollars to buy control over 250,000 acres of Mali's best rice producing land."
In a new study, the Arab Organisation for Agricultural Development says that Gulf States' projects to grow food abroad are not large enough to slash the Arab farm import bill.
"Why should we prioritize the production of corn to feed animals in Korea when we cannot even feed all the Filipino people?" asked Arze Glipo, lead convenor of the Task Force Food Sovereignty (TFFS). Think about that.
KTG Agrar AG, Germany’s largest farming company, plans to increase land under management by 20 percent to 25 percent within a year. The company farms 29,000 hectares in eastern Germany and Lithuania.
By providing powerful agricultural equipment and technical assistance, the brand is participating in Saudi Firm Al-Rajhi International's US$400 Million project to grow corn and wheat in Africa's arid lands
Many governments in the region have been trying to address the food security concern by investing in farmlands overseas such as Sudan and Malaysia. John W Power, president, LSC International, feels this is unlikely to solve the problem in the long term, especially if the indigenous population is short of food.
Kuwait China Investment Co (KCIC), a firm linked to the Gulf Arab state's sovereign wealth fund, is eyeing investments in Asia's agriculture sector, the company's managing director said on Wednesday.
"The government has verified and delineated 1.6 million hectares of virgin land suitable for large-scale commercial farming in different parts of the country," Esayas Kebede, Director of the recently formed Agricultural Investment Support told Reuters.
Full text of the agreement for a rubber and oil palm concession between Liberia and Malaysia's Sime Darby, covering 311,187 ha.
