Very imprudent policy…danger of being perceived as neo-colonism. Why is this better than just importing food?

More sensible policy alternatives would be to focus on providing more incentives for Chinese farmers to upgrade their farming technology and improve productivity on China’s home land.

Chinese companies will be encouraged to buy farmland abroad, particularly in Africa and South America, to help guarantee food security under a plan being considered by Beijing. A proposal drafted by the Ministry of Agriculture would make supporting offshore land acquisition by domestic agricultural companies a central government policy. Beijing already has similar policies to boost offshore investment by state-owned banks, manufacturers and oil companies, but offshore agricultural investment has so far been limited to a few small projects. (source: FT)