Large-scale Land Appropriations. Analysis of the phenomenon and proposed guidelines for future action.

This document, available in French, English, Spanish and Portuguese http://www.agter.asso.fr/article480_en.html, considers the meaning of ‘investment’ and the types of investment the world needs to achieve food security and protect the environment, distinguishes the privatisation of common resources from the concentration of lands that are already recognised as private property, and identifies new elements of land appropriation and concentration.

We are all affected by this phenomenon, which is now a major global issue. Employment, the creation and distribution of added value, and the production of food goods and environmental services all serve the general interest. Their regulation cannot be left to the play of the markets. Beyond the debate about different models of production, there are fundamental societal choices to be made. Moreover, this report provided the basis for the positions of the French diplomacy on agricultural investments and massive land appropriation.