Bread and water.
Even in the face of this year’s remarkably vibrant stock market, there remains some ugly undercurrents of how the bounty doesn’t touch everyone. In particular, I find it extremely disquieting, as an investor and as a citizen, that people might be going to bed hungry.
While the technology revolution seemingly knows no bounds (and a large percentage of the population owns a cell phone, iPad, or computer) a significant percentage of our fellow citizens are existing below poverty levels, and many struggle to keep a nourishing diet for their families.
The promise of agribusiness and nutrition has not lived up to the hype or equaled the momentum of gadgets, widgets, and devices.
When economic turmoil demolishes people’s opportunity to survive, the whole societal fabric weakens.
Many of us live a lifestyle in which issues of poverty, hunger, or medical catastrophe are not a part of our daily thoughts. The currency of our existence is “green,” and hopes for economic and market revitalization rest upon our satisfaction with our bank account. However, in many parts of the world, our own included, economic revitalization and having bread on the table are sometimes dichotomous concepts.
While our government provides subsidies for basic needs, as well as politically laden stipends for the agriculture sector, some people “fall through the cracks.” Not all solutions are political, nor is there always equality in the dispensation of opportunity. But it is tragic that this basic human need for nourishment is not affordable for everyone.
Track record.
Not only do we need to improve the governmental climate, but the investment framework for agriculture needs to be compatible, as well. Somewhere, somehow, there needs to be a clearer vision for reforms which improve the prospects for profitable capital allocations in this area. Crucial investments in wheat, energy, soil research, hydroponics, harvesting and delivery are the next generation of opportunity for nations, and investors, to benefit the “bottom line.”
Poverty and malnutrition are issues which reverberate far beyond the dinner table. Research I have read stated that a child’s brain is affected if he goes to school hungry. Therefore, education (and the long-term well-being of a nation’s future) is similarly disaffected. Hunger is not only a personal problem, but a matter of societal and national suffering, as well.
All of us.
Changing demographics have a profound impact upon all strata of a nation. Children are not the only sub-sector affected by nutritional imbalances. As more of us reach retirement, demand for dietary requirements and adjustments could also place a burden upon medical and agricultural industries. No one, for example, should have to choose between medicine (medical care) and food…or utilities, for that matter. I don’t believe that’s a fair compromise to impose upon the indigent, or less well-off.
Look, I am not a social scientist or a politician. But my market data analysis has highlighted some of these sector inequities and imbalances for years. Therefore, I have written previously abut cultivating investment opportunities in Agriculture, Water Purification, Bio-Sciences, and Energy.
These are not simply quantitative data, however. They relate significantly to our attitude about investing, our social and moral imperatives, and our connection to other humans, of any origin or region, that also populate this finite globe we inhabit.
Scotty C. George
(212) 624-1147
The information contained herein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable but is not necessarily complete and it accuracy cannot be guaranteed. It is intended for private informational purposes only. Any opinions expressed are subject to change without notice. Du Pasquier Asset Management and its affiliated companies and/or individuals may from time to time own or have positions in the securities or contrary to the recommendation discussed herein.
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