"The UAE is looking not just at land [acquisitions] but developing the whole supply chain," says Nicholas Lodge, managing partner at Clarity, a consultancy that advises on investments in agricultural industries.

Abu Dhabi-based firm Al-Dahra agreed to invest $ 400 million to buy eight Serbian farm companies and develop them to grow and process food and fodder for export, in the biggest investment in Serbian agriculture for decades.

BRICS states, except Russia, are enhancing and facilitating land grabs abroad in a way that is inconsistent with their proclamations of sustainable development, cooperation solidarity, and respect of national sovereignty.

In its 2012 Annual Report, Louis Dreyfus Commodities says it owns and operates a total of more than 180,000 hectares of farming land distributed around the world, and that it is looking into more farming opportunities in the Ivory Coast, Cameroon and Tanzania.

The potential for investment in Eastern European agricultural land is gaining more and more attention. Information is being dug up by individual commercial investment organizations to make investment moves.

Karuturi said it will borrow "hundreds of millions" of dollars from a sovereign wealth fund to invest in farming in East Africa after development banks declined to provide assistance because of “unfair” criticism by advocacy groups

A consortium of Saudi groups - comprising dairy giant Almarai, grain importer Al Rajhi and Salic, the agriculture arm of the country's Public Investment Fund sovereign wealth fund – buys Continental Farmers Group, which has large farming operations in Poland and the Ukraine.

In recent times the practice of land grabbing (which is intrinsically tied with water grabbing) has increased.

The bulk of oil palm operations are being carried out by the Palawan Palm & Vegetable Oil Mills Inc. and its sister company Agumil Philippines Inc., which were established through joint ventures between Filipino, Singaporean and Malaysian investors.

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.

Report examines Brazil’s programme to transform Mozambique’s Nacala corridor, the Chinese Agricultural Technology Demonstration Centre, and a private Chinese rice investment project in the Xai-Xai irrigation scheme.

The Latvian government is planning restrictions on selling land to foreign investors. "We are not planning to restrict the purchase of agricultural land, but we do plan regulations to make sure that the land is used productively."