This blog, which is part of a wider global initiative on Commercial Pressures on Land led by the International Land Coalition, contains press reports, research papers, case studies and any other relevant information about the new wave of “commercial pressures on land” that poor rural land-users are facing all over the world.
It seeks to provide updated information to all those trying to monitor, quantify and understand the extent of this ongoing phenomenon.
Read more about the Blog
Read more about the Commercial Pressures on Land Initiative
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Modeling the global trade and environmental impacts of biofuel policies
Posted on 03 September, 2010 No comments
IFPRI, August 2010By Bouët, Antoine, Dimaranan, Betina V., Valin, Hugo
“There is rising skepticism about the potential positive environmental impacts of first generation biofuels. Growing biofuel crops could induce diversion of other crops dedicated to food and feed needs. The relocation of production could increase deforestation and bring significant new volumes of carbon into the atmosphere. In this paper, we develop a methodology for assessing the indirect land use change effects related to biofuel policies in a computable general equilibrium framework. Read the rest of this entry »
research papers (english), *EU*, *global*, agrofuels, climate change, CPL leading to land use change, deforestation, environmental degradation, policies and laws, [Brazil], [Indonesia], [USA] -
Non à l’accaparement des terres agricoles
Posted on 31 August, 2010 No comments
Actualite News Environment, 30 août 2010Par Jean-Charles Batenbaum
Fóto par Lin Chia Hui/Flickr
“Les Amis de la Terre publient aujourd’hui un tout nouveau rapport qui met en évidence les conséquences funestes de la politique Agrocarburants de l’Union européenne. En effet, selon le rapport de l’organisme, afin de satisfaire ses besoins, l’UE provoque une vraie ruée sur l’Afrique où des étendues toujours plus vastes de terres sont confisquées aux populations locales. Pour les Amis de la Terre, ce phénomène échappe à tout contrôle et est largement sous-estimé. Read the rest of this entry »
press, research papers (french), *Africa*, *EU*, agrofuels, conflict, evictions, food security, land rights -
Africa: up for grabs. The scale and impact of land grabbing for agrofuels
Posted on 31 August, 2010 1 comment
Friends of the Earth Africa and Europe, August 2010“Brussels, Belgium and Benin City, Nigeria, August 30, 2010 – The amount of land being taken in Africa to meet Europe’s increasing demand for biofuels is underestimated and out of control, new investigations by Friends of the Earth reveal today. [1] The report is available in: ENGLISH, FRENCH, SPANISH, and GERMAN.
The research, which looked at 11 African countries, found at least five million hectares of land – an area the size of Denmark – is being acquired by foreign companies to produce biofuels mainly for the European market.
The practice – known as land grabbing – is increasing and is dominated by European companies. However with official public information largely absent, current figures are likely to be only a snapshot and gross underestimates. Read the rest of this entry »
Commercial Pressures Key Readings, research papers (english), (french), (german), (spanish), *Africa*, *EU*, agrofuels, conflict, evictions, food security, land rights, [Angola], [Benin], [Cameroon], [Congo], [Democratic Republic of Congo], [Ethiopia], [Ghana], [Kenya], [Madagascar], [Mozambique], [Nigeria], [Sierra Leone], [Swaziland], [Tanzania] -
Biocombustíveis brasileiros em uma corrida de obstáculos
Posted on 16 August, 2010 No comments
O Brasil, que lidera o desenvolvimento de agrocombustíveis, enfrenta certificações européias que podem constituir novas barreiras.IPS, 16 Agosto 2010
Por Yans Felippe Geckler
Foto por Department of Energy and Climate Change/Flickr
“O Brasil começou uma contraofensiva em relação às medidas da União Europeia (UE) para certificar os agrocombustíveis, que podem levar a barreiras à importação de combustíveis procedentes do país, que é o primeiro produtor mundial de etanol obtido da cana-de-açúcar. As normas de certificação da UE para o etanol e o biodiesel vegetais pretendem assegurar que representem uma redução substancial de gases-estufa – em relação aos combustíveis fósseis – e que não provenham de florestas, mangues, nem áreas protegidas. Read the rest of this entry »
press (portuguese), *EU*, *Latin America*, agribusiness, agrofuels, environmental degradation, food security, policies and laws, [Brazil] -
La Unión Europea detrás del pastel latinoamericano. Impactos económicos, sociales y ambientales
Posted on 04 August, 2010 No comments
Ecoportal.net, 4 Agosto 2010Foto por bengarland/Flickr
“En América Latina y el Caribe los Tratados de Libre Comercio son una continua fuente de conflictos y de oposición social. Muchas realidades y estudios constatan y denuncian los negativos efectos sociales, económicos, culturales y ambientales que ha representado para la región la firma de estos tratados. El peor referente se ubica en el Tratado de Libre Comercio de América del Norte, firmado entre EEUU, Canadá y México. Read the rest of this entry »
miscellaneous (spanish), *EU*, *Latin America*, agribusiness, CPL affecting family farmers, food production, free trade agreements, indigenous people, land concentration, livestock, mining -
Assumptions in the European Union biofuels policy: frictions with experiences in Germany, Brazil and Mozambique
Posted on 03 August, 2010 No comments
Journal of Peasant Studies (forthcoming), July 2010By David Fig, Jennifer Franco, Lucia Goldfarb, Lucia Goldfarb, Mireille Hönicke, and Maria Luisa Mendonça
“EU biofuels policy is based on the assumption that it will lead to greenhouse gas savings, energy security and rural development, however in-depth research in Germany, Brazil and Mozambique reveals fundamental contradictions between EU policy assumptions and practices in the real world.
Abstract
The biofuel project is an agro-industrial development and politically contested policy process where governments increasingly become global actors. European Union (EU) biofuels policy rests upon arguments about societal benefits of three main kinds – namely, environmental protection (especially greenhouse gas savings), energy security and rural development, especially in the global South. Read the rest of this entry »
reactions, research papers (english), *EU*, *Latin America*, agribusiness, agrofuels, CPL leading to land use change, evictions, land rights, policies and laws, [Brazil], [Germany], [Mozambique] -
Acuerdos comerciales y derechos humanos ¿Andariveles separados?
Posted on 02 August, 2010 No comments
ALAI, 2 Agosto 2010Por Marcelo Saguier
Foto por Gonzak/Flickr
“La UE y el MERCOSUR reanudan las negociaciones para un acuerdo de asociación tras su estancamiento en 2004. Además de crisis financiera internacional, el contexto actual está signado por los crecientes cuestionamientos al impacto de las empresas transnacionales (ETs) por su falta de respeto a los derechos socio-ambientales y humanos. Botnia es un caso testigo de esto. Los acuerdos comerciales muchas veces tienen motivaciones relacionadas al acceso a los recursos naturales. Read the rest of this entry »
press (spanish), *EU*, *Latin America*, corporate social responsibility, free trade agreements, human rights, private sector -
Agronegocio: el capital europeo (y la Europa del Capital) en el campo brasileño
Posted on 23 July, 2010 No comments
Omal (Observatorio de Multinacionales en América Latina), 23 Julio 2010Por Breno Bringel, Jon Sanz Landaluze, Douglas Estevam y Janaina Stronzake
Foto por Miriam Cardoso de Souza/Flickr
“En la estructura agraria brasileña actual, caracterizada por la profundización de los aspectos más perniciosos para los campesinos y campesinas, la concentración de la tierra sigue siendo el tema central que mejor refleja la apuesta por un modelo, el agronegocio, que el gobierno brasileño y la Unión Europea tratarán de profundizar en la VI Cumbre de Jefes de Estado y de Gobierno de la Unión Europea (UE) y América Latina y el Caribe (ALC) que se celebrará en Madrid a mediados de mayo. Read the rest of this entry »
press (spanish), *EU*, *Latin America*, agribusiness, agrofuels, conflict, CPL affecting family farmers, environmental degradation, evictions, food production, GM, Switzerland, transnational private investment funds, [Brazil], [France] -
Land Grab Study: “Advancing African Agriculture” (AAA):The Impact of Europe’s Policies and Practices on African Agriculture and Food Security
Posted on 21 July, 2010 No comments
FIAN, 21 July 2010By Alison Graham, Sylvain Aubry, Rolf Künnemann and Sofía Monsalve Suárez
“This report focuses on the role of the EU and its member states in land grabbing in Africa. Even though it is reported that the major current international investors are the Gulf States, China and South Korea, this reports sheds light on the EU’s involvement land acquisition in Africa and on the EU members States’ responsibility in implementing policies that have increased demand for land acquistion. Given the fact that six European countries are among the biggest investors in terms of outwards Foreign Direct Investment stock in agriculture (in descendent order Italy, Norway, Germany, Denmark, the United Kingdom, and France), their role cannot be neglected and deserves closer examination. The report is based on the preliminary work done by NGOs and international organizations and agencies. Read the rest of this entry »
Commercial Pressures Key Readings, research papers (english), *Africa*, *EU*, agrofuels, CPL affecting family farmers, Denmark, food security, policies and laws, [Ethiopia], [France], [Germany], [Italy], [Mozambique], [Norway], [Uganda], [United Kingdom] -
Ensuring responsible agricultural investments in the least developed countries and developing countries
Posted on 20 July, 2010 No comments
Centre d’analyse stratégique, July 2010By Dominique Auverlot, Blandine Barreau, Patrick Brouchet, Johanne Buba, Caroline Halfen
“The transfer of land, and more generally of agricultural production factors, to foreign investors in developing countries, leads to an ethical dilemma: how can one analyse the decision by the Sudanese government to allocate the use of 200,000 hectares to a Qatari company when the country is the leading destination for international food aid? These decisions, which in principle aim to contribute to the development of the country, cannot be condemned a priori, without thorough examination: indeed, only 15 % of the Sudanese arable area is currently under crops, leaving some 68 million hectares of ‘good land’ unused. Read the rest of this entry »
research papers (english), *EU*, agriculture, food production, food security, policies and laws, [Egypt], [France], [Japan], [Kenya], [Pakistan], [Saudi Arabia]