Agriculture productivity

All Eyes on Agriculture

“Emerging nations have great hunger and meeting this growing demand for food will require great investments to strengthen agriculture and make it more productive.”

Marc Garrigasait, President and Director of the Panda Agriculture and Water Fund, 2016

The growing demand for food across emerging economies is a point of great interest for the world’s largest institutional investors. Sovereign wealth funds are expected to drive a four-fold increase in agriculture investments over the next decade to a total of $240 billion.

A study of the world’s most lucrative Sovereign Wealth Funds by the Esade Business School, KPMG and Icex-Invest found that the current trends in the agricultural investment space point towards an impressive rise in asset allocation from $60 billion to $240 billion in the last decade. …

The Vastness of 21st Century Agriculture is Falling Short

Our global food industry sustains more people, with increased efficiency and a lower cost than any other period in human history. The problem is that big food continues to have an astounding influence on global health and the environment.

Through agricultural innovation and industrialization, the majority of the global food supply has now found itself under control of a select few major corporations around the world. The increase in efficiency is nothing short of impressive. The fact that California-based Earthbound Farm can harvest 10,000 pounds of lettuce per hour using a crew of only 12 people is simply astounding, especially considering that not so long ago this same production capacity would have taken a 40-person team the entire day.…