Financialization and Agriculture
Historically, agriculture has been of little interest to institutional investors. However, over the past decade this has begun to change both in the United States and globally, as institutional investors have begun to invest in agriculture more. Economists and institutional investors now believe that agriculture is in the early stages of financialization and thus, agriculture is likely to see increased capital investment from institutional investors in the near future (Economist 2015). This will likely lead to significant transformations in the US agriculture sector in the near future.
As financialization of agriculture is a new phenomenon, there continues to be a dearth of research on it. This is an exploratory project that is studying financial investment in US agriculture. Specifically, the project is examining: (1) The factors that are driving increased investment in agriculture; (2) The impacts of increased institutional investment on agriculture; (3) The environmental impacts of institutional investment in agriculture?
Key research questions include the following:
Factors driving increased investment in agriculture:
The first proposed case study is recent agricultural expansion in Mohave County, Arizona. Mohave County is located in northwestern Arizona and is considered to be mostly a desert environment. In the past few years, it has experienced significant agricultural expansion driven by institutional investors and multinational corporations.
Historically, agriculture has been of little interest to institutional investors. However, over the past decade this has begun to change both in the United States and globally, as institutional investors have begun to invest in agriculture more. Economists and institutional investors now believe that agriculture is in the early stages of financialization and thus, agriculture is likely to see increased capital investment from institutional investors in the near future (Economist 2015). This will likely lead to significant transformations in the US agriculture sector in the near future.
As financialization of agriculture is a new phenomenon, there continues to be a dearth of research on it. This is an exploratory project that is studying financial investment in US agriculture. Specifically, the project is examining: (1) The factors that are driving increased investment in agriculture; (2) The impacts of increased institutional investment on agriculture; (3) The environmental impacts of institutional investment in agriculture?
Key research questions include the following:
Factors driving increased investment in agriculture:
- How are institutional investors conceptualizing agriculture?
- What are the ways that they value agriculture as an asset and what do they see as the future of agriculture?(2) What aret
- What are the effects of institutional investment on the kinds of crops being grown, farm size, farming practices, and the use agricultural technologies?
- Is institutional investment driving agricultural expansion in areas with resource scarcities?
- Is it leading to the appropriation of resources from other groups and uses?
- Is it encouraging best environmental practices?
The first proposed case study is recent agricultural expansion in Mohave County, Arizona. Mohave County is located in northwestern Arizona and is considered to be mostly a desert environment. In the past few years, it has experienced significant agricultural expansion driven by institutional investors and multinational corporations.