Countries in north Africa and the Middle East are urgently seeking ways to soften the blow of surging food prices for their citizens, alarmed by protests against authoritarian rulers from Algeria to Yemen.

Mali’s president and Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi have begun a major agricultural project that will divert much of the river’s water and threaten the delta’s future.

The New Zealand Superannuation Fund's purchase of a New Zealand farm is just the first of a $500 million plan which will see it invest in local and international rural land.

Ethiopia has offered 1.8 million hectares of its farmland to Indian investors that equals nearly 40 percent of the total area of the principal grain-growing state of Punjab.

A handful of North African countries, along with Iraq and Sudan, could feed the Gulf.

Brazil seeks to downplay fears that it was seeking to block foreign investment in its farmland, saying instead it was looking to ease restrictions for farmers rather than speculators.

There are massive areas of agricultural lands and huge water resources in some countries that suffer financial constraints, while there are some rich Arab states that have the money but not the land or the water.

MOU signed with Perigon Advisory to launch a RM3 billion agribusiness fund to promote food security in the OIC and generate returns for its investors.

"The more state regulates and bans things, the more difficult it is to do business"

As a relatively new and untapped asset class, farmland remains mysterious to some insitutional investors. Greg Bright spoke to Charmion McBride, chief operating officer, global farmland, at Insight Investment in the UK.

Hungary holds the Presidency of the European Union. But it is currently risking conflict with the EU. It has forbidden sales of agricultural land to foreigners.

German investors have splashed out more than $100 million in a month buying thousands of hectares of dairying land in the South Island.