Around the world, food prices are rising, and some areas have even sparked mass unrest as a result. Using agriculture exchange traded funds (ETFs), investors may capitalize on the rising food prices as the world population grows and demand for basic foods increase.
The Worldwatch Institute calculates that 1.02 billion people were “undernourished” in 2009, which translates into a 12% rise year-over-year, reports Tony Sagami for Uncommon Wisdom Daily. As a result, many emerging markets have already seen protests on the rising costs of basic food products. [New ETF For The Small Guys In Agribusiness.]
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) states that food prices are at an all-time high. However, the price increase has been attributed to growing demand from the emerging markets while supply has been relatively stable. [Agriculture ETFs Soar As Food Prices Hit Record.]
With an increasing population and growing middle class in the emerging markets, producing more food is becoming a big business.
- PowerShares DB Agriculture (NYSEArca: DBA) – The fund holds a basket of agriculture futures, including corn, soybeans, sugar, cattle, coffee, cotton, lean hogs and wheat.
- Market Vectors Agribusiness (NYSEArca: MOO) – The fund holds agricultural commodity producers.
For more information on agriculture, visit our agriculture category.
For disclosure, Tom Lydon’s clients own MOO.
Max Chen contributed to this article.
The opinions and forecasts expressed herein are solely those of Tom Lydon, and may not actually come to pass. Information on this site should not be used or construed as an offer to sell, a solicitation of an offer to buy, or a recommendation for any product.