The worldwide shortage of food grains, coupled with high food prices, is driving leading food companies and investors from the UAE to Pakistan in search of lucrative deals in the agriculture sector in of one of the world's major food exporters. With the entire world passing through an era of record high food prices and acute food shortage predicted in the near future, leading Gulf investors are planning joint ventures and direct investment in Pakistan's farm and livestock sectors, a private TV channel reported. Big UAE companies are also planning to develop their own farms for wheat, rice, sugarcane, cotton, fruits and vegetables in Pakistan, said Bilal Pasha, Commercial Consul at Pakistan's Consulate in Dubai. He said: "A few big companies from the UAE have shown keen interest in setting up big corporate farms in Pakistan. Big food traders and manufacturers from the UAE, such as Al Ghurair Group, Emirates Investment Group, Effco from Sharjah and Majid Al Futtaim (MAF) Group are going to play a vital role in Pakistan's agricultural field. Some dairy companies from the UAE and Saudi Arabia are also setting up big diary farms in Pakistan." Companies from Qatar and other Middle Eastern countries are also keen to invest in agro-industries in Pakistan, he added. MAF is setting up two shopping malls in Pakistan, and the group is also keen to procure most of the fruits and vegetables required for its GCC shopping malls from Pakistan, Pasha said. "The top three private equity investors from the UAE are negotiating for big investments in Pakistan's agricultural sectors," he added. He said that provincial governments own the land in Pakistan and can grant 100 percent ownership to foreign investors. The required minimum size of a "corporate" farm is two acres and the minimum investment is $500,000. While Pakistan has received a substantial share of GCC investment in financial services, telecom and real estate, co-operating in the agriculture and dairy fields will be a win-win situation for both parties. Pakistan has some of the highest returns in the sector and the GCC imports 90 percent of its agricultural and dairy needs, Pasha said. The Pakistan government is keen to promote production to face food shortages and to boost exports from the country. The Pakistan Consulate and Market Access Promotion (MAP) Services Group from Bahrain are jointly organising the Middle East-Pakistan Agriculture and Dairy Investment Forum in Dubai on Tuesday. About 30 leading Pakistani agricultural and diary companies will be participating in the forum and meet their UAE counterparts to negotiate joint venture projects in the agricultural and diary sectors. According to MAP, Pakistan's agricultural sector grew by 4.6 percent in 2006, compared to 3.1 percent growth in India and Malaysia. It also said that return on investment in some dairy and agricultural products in Pakistan is the best not only in the region but also worldwide. Copyright Associated Press of Pakistan, 2008