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September 5, 2008 10:45:52 PM CDT

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Investors Sink Billions in 'Green Gold'

Posted Jun 5, 08 8:22 AM CDT in Business 

(Newser) – Billions of investment dollars are pouring into agriculture as the global demand for food explodes, turning crops such as wheat, corn, and soybeans into green gold, reports the New York Times. And while the immediate impact of more money being fed into agriculture will likely result in increased food production, some critics worry the boom could go bust just as quickly.

While traditional agriculture investors tend to stick with it through tough times, experts are concerned new investors are simply looking for a quick buck, and will lose interest at the first sign of a downturn. “Farmland can be a bubble just like Florida real estate,” said one broker. 

Source New York Times

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Central Illinois corn and soybean farmer David Ray fills hoppers with soybeans while planting his farm field near Loami, Ill.   (AP Photo/Seth Perlman)
Wheat grows in a field outside the Banner Co-op in Banner, Okla., Friday, May 9, 2008.   (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
Mike Olson delivers a truck load of corn to the local grain elevator in McLean, Ill., in this April 5, 2007, file photo.   (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green, file)
Wheat grows in a field in Banner, Okla., Friday, May 9, 2008.   (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
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food prices  • agriculture  • farming  • investing  • corn  • wheat  • soybeans


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