Rich Nations Buy Farms in Poor Ones: "Is There Such a Thing as Agro-Imperialism?" (via @nytimesmagazine)
Agriculture in Bagamoyo, Tanzania: Farm land in Tanzania, Kenya, and other African countries is being targeted for purchase by wealthy nations short on their own food production in hopes of securing future food supplies. Photo by rogiro/flickr.
"Fearing food shortages, investors from wealthy countries are snapping up land in poor countries to grow food there. Is this development or exploitation?"
Andrew Rice: "...The American scientist was catching a glimpse of an emerging test of the world's food resources, one that has begun to take shape over the last year, largely outside the bounds of international scrutiny. A variety of factors -- some transitory, like the spike in food prices, and others intractable, like global population growth and water scarcity -- have created a market for farmland, as rich but resource-deprived nations in the Middle East, Asia and elsewhere seek to outsource their food production to places where fields are cheap and abundant...
"...Investors who are taking part in the land rush say they are confronting a primal fear, a situation in which food is unavailable at any price...
Also see: Several Related articles at Signs From Earth Notes
Also see: National Geographic, June 2009: Global Food Crisis: The End of Plenty
