ABSTRACT
This chapter explains the interrelationship between money and food is complex and often strained, and in certain instances leads to highly undesirable outcomes for vast segments of the world's population. Financialization refers to the growing role played by financial markets within a specific sector, which in this case is the agri-food sector. The globalization of food helped to give rise to the liberalization of finance, which has increased the flow of foreign direct investment (FDI) between countries. Biofuels are also driving major investments into agri-food chains. World ethanol production has increased from roughly 5.5 billion gallons in 2000 to 23.5 billion gallons in 2013. Researchers at Iowa State University found that statewide only 17 percent of Iowa corn farmers had any interest in harvesting their stover. Environmental concerns also appear to be important, as a number of farmers expressed concerns about what the removal of corn stover from their field would mean for environmental quality.
