The Indonesian government may be in the market for an even larger slice of Australian land than the 1.5 million hectares it has proposed.

US, Canadian, Arabian and Swiss interests are buying up multiple properties in around Stockinbingal, and the handful of Australian family farms that remain want the federal government to intervene.

Irrico, the Russia-based agricultural investment company, revealed it is on the verge of doubling its land portfolio as it unveiled it had attracted a third investor, emerging markets private equity group Hong Kong-based ADM Capital.

A move by the Indonesian government to buy one million hectares of land for beef production in Australia for its own local market has reignited the foreign ownership debate.

Indonesia has moved to solve its beef supply problems by approving a plan to buy one million hectares of Australian farmland, a plot four times the size of the Australian Capital Territory.

Indonesia's announcement yesterday that it plans to buy a million hectares of Australian agricultural land to raise beef cattle is the clearest signal yet that it wants to lower its dependence on the current live export system.

Australia's PM says he favours a joint venture approach to farmland investment, comprising equity from farmers, perhaps through co-operatives, with domestic or some external investment.

Australia's Murray Goulburn Co-operative says it plans to bypass traditional bank lending by forging alliances with international investors to support dairy farms.

The ABC's Vote Compass has revealed that three-quarters of Australians want more restrictions on foreign ownership of agricultural land.

The Australian Greens Greens say the government should be cracking down on foreign investors buying up Australian farms to protect not only the economy but also long-term food security.

Kevin Rudd has committed to double the amount of land for farming in northern Australia and simplify investment rules for foreign investors, to take advantage of the boom in Asian demand for produce

The UK Financial Conduct Authority has taken Sierra Leone farmland investor Capital Alternatives to the High Court for “promoting and/or operating collective investment schemes (CISs) in the UK illegally and without our authorisation”.

China's biggest state-owned agricultural conglomerate has bought farmland and port facilities in Western Australia and the move has sharply divided responses.

Chinese meat firms are looking abroad to scout for potential acquisition targets among beef farmers and processors.

FORMER Macarthur Coal chairman Keith De Lacy is backing the potential $100 million float of a beef cattle company, with expectations that offshore investors will support the company's initial public offer.

Steep growth in Chinese olive oil consumption, unlikely to be met soon by a budding domestic supply, is encouraging investors to get hold of olive farms and processing plants in producing countries.

Companies linked to China's biggest agricultural conglomerate are being flooded with offers to buy or lease "hundreds of thousands" of hectares of land in Australia's Wheatbelt in the early stages of their bid to create an independent grain supply chain from the port of Albany.

NBPOL, a medium-sized Papua New Guinnea-based company, has eyed barangay Sta. Teresa as the pilot test area and demonstration farm for palm oil.

China is headed to spend a record this year on food assets and farms after a $32.7 billion splurge in the past five years and just $4.2 billion in the prior half-decade, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

Black River Asset Management, a hedge fund run by an arm of the world's largest agriculture company, Cargill, has increased its stake in the unlisted agricultural company BFB Group

There is "a wall of money" looking for a home in agricultural investments worldwide, say managers for BlackRock's London-based World Agriculture Fund.

Capital Alternatives, which offers investments ranging from holdings in African agriculture to pop memorabilia, claims it can generate returns of more than 20% over five years on West Australian wheat farms.

Australia's Trade Minister Craig Emerson says plans to increase scrutiny on farmland investments would ruin any chance at all of a free-trade deal being struck with China.

According to BlackRock world agriculture fund portfolio manager and director Desmond Cheung there is a "wall of money" that is looking to back the world's growing appetite for a stable and growing food supply.

Hassad Australia chief executive Tom McKeon said the company employed people from local communities, supported local businesses and paid tax. The company owns 11 farms over 250,000ha in Australia, including three in WA.

Singapore-based Duxton Asset Management said it is in talks over planned investments in four Australian farms despite increasing scrutiny of farm purchases by foreigners.

Reading between the lines, the Durban BRICS resolutions will support favoured corporations' extraction and land-grab strategies and confirm the financing of both African land-grabbing and the extension of neo-colonial infrastructure through a new 'BRICS Bank'

Lakewood Asset Management is pleased to announce the launch of its latest agricultural asset project -- Australian Farmland in partnership with Agri Firma Capital of the UK.

The 16,000-hectare farm which Första AP-fonden bought in Australia in December was one of a clutch of purchases of farmland, worth some $100m, by the pension fund.

Mark Wiseman, chief executive of the $A170 billion fund, will visit Australia this month amid the group’s expanding portfolio of interests across the Tasman.