The Indonesian government’s long-discussed plan to launch a massive food estate in Merauke, Papua, in a bid to boost the nation’s food production is facing uncertainty amid land acquisition problems, a top ministry official says.

February 2012 workshop in Ouidah, Benin brought together over thirty participants from farmer organisations and NGOs in West and Central Africa to share experiences and analysis of land grabs.

The problems of access to land for women and communities have been worsened by the land grab perpetuated by multinationals and society's wealthy.

A heated debate ensued yesterday in Tanzania's Parliament after Kawe lawmaker Halima Mdee moved a private motion calling on the House to adopt a resolution pressing the government to suspend the allocation of huge chunks of land for investment to foreigners.

In New Zealand, an opposition party is demanding hard figures on how much farmland is owned by foreigners, but the government says it can't produce the figures.

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.

Australia's Trade Minister Andrew Robb has engaged in a fiery exchange with controversial radio broadcaster Alan Jones over foreign investment in agriculture.

The foreign ownership debate in Australia needs to evolve to – or be merged with – a broader debate about the future of the agricultural sector.

As China becomes a large importer, its food security strategy calls for gaining control over imports from their source.

A mysterious new partnership between Indonesia's spy agency and Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) to boost foreign investment has civil society wary of deepening agrarian conflict in the post-authoritarian country.

Economic land concessions (ELC) in Cambodia have a profound and negative impact upon rural households located near the plantations. Despite moratoriums on land grabbing, companies operating ELCs continue dominate and run much of Cambodia’s arable land.

The UN's Economic Commission, Germany's BMZ and the World Bank signed a Declaration of Intent to establish a new Network of Excellence on Land Governance in Africa to better secure land rights across Africa.

Strong distrust remains among the indigenous Papuans of Indonesia's Merauke regency about a major "food estate" project.

Oxfam looks at the current level and types of agribusiness investment in Myanmar, outlines some of the risks to communities, and explores state regulation of outbound investments as a potential way to promote responsible business practices in the sector.

China’s agricultural investment abroad grew more than tenfold in less than a decade and parallels its emergence as a major importer of agricultural commodities. But the focus of investments are shifting from farming and raw materials to business acquisition.

While large-scale soy growers say they’ve brought prosperity to the Cerrado, Campos Lindos has poverty levels far higher than the Brazilian average, lacks basic social services, and suffers high infant and maternal mortality rates.

In early June of this year, a Russian business delegation during its trip to Iran suggested that Iran acquire more than 100,000 hectares of agricultural land in Russia and carry out "extra-territorial agriculture".

In the face of increased land grabbing and speculation, the European Commission must put a common land governance framework on the political agenda in coming months to ensure a future for farmers and protect the well-being of citizens.

Mark Zuckerberg doesn’t work the land on his Hawaii ranch, but he and other wealthy landowners still benefit from huge agricultural tax breaks.

Las tierras de cultivo en Estados Unidos se han revalorizado a un ritmo medio del 12,56% anual, cuadruplicando el valor medio de la propiedad entre los años 2000 y 2023. En respuesta, el Senado aprobó medida que regula inversiones extrangeras inmobiliarias y les deja potestad para prohibirlas.

Hundreds of farmers in Northwest China are expected to toil the soil in the neighboring Republic of Kazakhstan next spring. "We have signed a deal with Kazakhstan to rent 7,000 hectares of land in Alakol county for use for 10 years," a local agricultural official said.

The Government is considering the purchase of farmland worth US$500 million (Dh1.8 billion) in Pakistan as part of a strategy to lower food import costs.

The Rivers State Government has reiterated its resolve to create an enabling environment to enhance rice production and processing, as well as promote and protect other agricultural business interests in the state.

There is growing interest in agricultural land, which Bramdean Asset Management is looking at and believes has huge potential

One issue reportedly delaying UAE investment in Pakistan is the Gulf state appearing to want “blanket exemption” from Islamabad’s agricultural export policies.

A food mega-project planned for a vast area in the Papuan district of Merauke is causing concern that indigenous people's land will be taken and their livelihoods destroyed.

Three major multi-billion Shariah-based projects to boost infrastructure, agriculture and hospitality sectors in GCC and elsewhere in the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia were launched here yesterday.

GCC countries face growing constraints in agricultural capacity. Structural factors are exacerbating pressures on food prices. A new report from Standard Chartered supports additional investment in agriculture.

“Foreigners who come here get astonished at the gleaming black earth,” said Viktor Karnushin, head of a local subsidiary of Sweden’s Black Earth Farming corporation, one of the biggest foreign players in Russian farming.

Lured by soaring food prices, corporations - both domestic and foreign - have been snapping up land in this fertile region the size of France, replacing inefficient Soviet-style collective farming with modern farming techniques and economies of scale.