As land acquisition becomes increasingly borderless, new mechanisms and codes of conduct are required to govern the relationship between investors, governments and local communities.

While Agri SA has been leading a push for South African farmers to invest and farm in a number of other countries across Africa, including the Republic of Congo, Libya and Zambia, the union has urged its members to stay away from countries where South Africa has no investment protection agreements.

Al Amoudi has a new company whose purpose is to grow food in Ethiopia for Saudi Arabia.

Swedish company Black Earth Farming (BEF) since 2006 has bought 300,000 hectares (740,000 acres) of Russian farmland after the government finally allowed land to be privatised after decades of state ownership.

Hebei Company plans to grow its operations -- wheat, maize, rice, vegetable and livestock production for the local, Chinese and European markets -- to about 100,000 acres [40,500 ha] of land in 8-10 years.

Gulf Arab states will pour $2 billion into a new agricultural fund in coming months to secure food supplies by buying stakes in existing agricultural firms, an executive involved in the fund's creation said on Sunday.

In view of food insecurity in Pakistan and dozens of women losing their lives just to get a few kilos of flour, there was no justification of selling agricultural land to foreigners, said Dr Azra Talat Sayeed

International experts and representatives of civil society have demanded an end to land leasing to foreign investors and countries.

South Africa said on Friday it had been offered 48 square miles of land in Angola and Uganda and also a land lease agreement in Zambia.

South African farmers have been offered land for agriculture in Angola and Uganda and the government is also in talks with the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia and Southern Sudan.

Foreigners have an interest (partial or total ownership) in 1.6 percent of all privately held US agricultural land, a 1.4 million acre increase from 2007.

Special issue on the Pakistani government's plans to dole out domestic farmlands to the Gulf countries on 99-year lease for corporate farming.