"Agriculture-related stocks have been hammered; as a result, we are now buyers of Monsanto (NYSE: MON)," says Glenn Rogers in Gordon Pape's The Internet Wealth Builder.

"Monsanto just recently released solid earnings and raised guidance for the year. They are now looking for earnings of $3.58 to $3.60 a share, up from $3.37 previously.

"The company said the change reflected higher-than-expected sales and gross profit in its seeds and traits business and its Roundup and other glyphosate-based herbicide business.

"The stock is down almost 20% from its all-time high of $145.80 reached in mid-June, but has lately been showing signs of renewed strength. Farmers may defer the purchase of a tractor but seed is likely to be the last place they will scrimp.

"There aren't many stocks that I am actively buying in the current market conditions but Monsanto is an exception. We rate the stock a buy."

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"As incomes around the world rise, so does demand for food; and the explosive growth in population is aggravating the situation even further," note Yiannis Mostrous and Roger Conrad.

The co-editors of Vital Resource Investor explain, "The big cycle in food demand has begun, and long-term-oriented investors will be rewarded handsomely." What's the best play? Among their favorites is Monsanto (NYSE: MON).

"Monsanto is the undisputed leader in the genetically modified (GM) seed industry. Its business consists of two segments: Seeds/Genomics and Agricultural Productivity.

"The Seeds/Genomics segment consists of the company's global seeds and traits business, and genetic technology platforms, including biotechnology, breeding and genomics.

"The Agricultural Productivity segment consists primarily of crop protection products, residential lawn-and-garden herbicide products, and the company's animal agricultural businesses.

"Monsanto shares have been affected by the market's shorter-term gyrations, but the underlying business is extremely healthy. In fact, the seed business is currently in a sweet spot as global food demand changes dramatically.

"The organic food industry is surprisingly resilient in an economic downturn," explains Benjamin Shepard, contributing editor with Personal Finance.

He adds, "Mainstream retailers and your corner grocer have been embracing the trend, devoting an ever-growing amount of shelf space to organic foods." Here's a trio of favorites.

"What was essentially a nascent industry in 1997 with $3.6 billion in sales has exploded to a behemoth with almost $14 billion in sales in 2006, according to the Organic Trade Association.

"And barring a major economic disaster worse than we've seen thus far, the industry looks set to continue double-digit growth well into the next decade.

"That's not to say there aren't potential troubles ahead as commodity prices continue to soar. Organic farming techniques tend to be more cost intensive--ironically enough--and transport costs continue to swell.

"But so far the industry has been able to pass the bulk of the higher costs onto consumers, and although sales volumes have dropped off and profits are down, those consumers are as dedicated as ever.

"The soaring cost of food isn't just hitting families in the US; it's hitting everyone around the world," says Neil George. Here, in Personal Finance, he looks at some agriculture, chemical and seed plays.

"During the past five years, consumer food costs have soared by more than 117%. And that momentum is increasing; in the trailing 12 months alone, prices surged more than 52%.

"The mega-investors aren't waiting around; they're buying into other parts of the ag business-from grain elevators to ag processors and distributors-as a workaround for such potential regulation.

"You shouldn't be sitting on your hands, either. This food trend is going to be here for a while, so you better stake your claim while buyers still outnumber sellers.

"One way to invest in this trend is to step into companies that are serving the ag producers. This means the companies developing and selling engineered seeds, as well as chemicals and fertilizer products needed to not just grow crops but more bountiful and, therefore, more profitable crops.

"Cosan SA Indústria & Comércio (NYSE: CZZ) is a terrific company that is benefiting from both higher agricultural prices and higher fuel prices," says Mike Burnick in his newly-launched advisory service, Market Shock Trader.

"Sugar-cane based ethanol has been refined for years in Brazil, at a significant cost advantage to other sources of ethanol. In fact, Brazilian ethanol is about 40% cheaper to make than in the U.S. - and costs less than half the price of European ethanol.

"It doesn't require deforestation or the destruction of natural resources to cultivate it. It can be processed and refined without expensive exploration and drilling. And, it produces 5 times the energy output of corn.

"Today, ethanol accounts for 50% of Brazil's total annual automotive fuel consumption, and more than 70% of all new cars sold in the country are flex-fuel capable, able to run either on gasoline, ethanol or some combination of the two.

"And Brazil's ethanol industry has plenty of room to grow for years to come - and plenty of customers demanding its low-cost cash crop. Germany alone uses about 450 million gallons of bio-diesel a year. An estimated 50% of Europe's cars and trucks can run on this bio-fuel.

"With Brazil at the hub of the alternative fuel revolution, Cosan SA Indústria & Comércio (NYSE: CZZ) is the king-of-ethanol. And, it's also the king-of-agriculture in Brazil too. That gives you double-play profit potential as Cosan earns a fortune from both higher sugar prices and booming ethanol demand.

"We think we've seen the worst and will likely see some improvement in the economy going forward," says growth stock specialist Harry Domash, editor of Winning Investing.

Among his buy recommendations, the advisor looks at two agriculture plays: Agrium (NYSE: AGU), a producer of fertilizers, and the diversified exchange-traded fund, PowerShares DB Commodity (ASE: DBC).

"Headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Agrium is a major North American producer and marketer of fertilizers. Agrium operates plants in Canada, the U.S., and in Argentina. Its major product is nitrogen fertilizer but it also makes potash and phosphate products.

"Agrium sells to wholesalers and through more than 800 company-owned retail stores in the U.S., Canada, and South America. Its stores also sell seed and other farm supplies.

"Agrium just recently completed its acquisition of UAP Holding, which had operated 370 distribution and storage facilities North America. Everything related to agriculture is booming, and Agrium, not counting its UAP acquisition, is growing sales around 30% annually.

Resource industry specialists Roger Conrad and Yiannis Mostrous are bullish on the agriculture and water sectors; in their model portfolio they already hold 6 stocks in these sectors.

The co-editors of Vital Resource Investor explain, "We see strong underpinnings for continued higher agricultural prices for many years to come." Here's their latest agrculture play: EI du Pont de Nemours (NYSE: DD).

"Recently the United Nations Food Agency warned of civil war in some countries because of global food shortages. With the rapid urbanization of Asian countries, we see a growing global dependence on a shrinking number of food producing nations, particularly with the world adding 78.5 million people each year.

"There will be ups and downs for prices along the way. A throttling back of America's efforts to develop ethanol so extensively or a move to use something besides corn to brew ethanol could take some of the upward pressure off corn prices.

"A real global recession could also cause food prices to back off for a time and it's also possible we'll see some form of US government intervention to curb food prices, particularly as the presidential election develops.

"One of the simplest and most genuine global long-term investment stories is the food sector," notes Yiannis Mostrous in Silk Road Investor. Here's a look at two ways to play this trend.

"Long-term, this should reward patient investors handsomely. As the world's population increases, demand will also grow, allowing companies in the food industry to handsomely profitWe continue to favor the theme and recommend you allocate some of your funds to it.

"There are myriad ways to play the burgeoning demand for vital resources used in food production. Our favorite is portfolio holding PowerShares DB Agriculture Fund (AMEX: DBA). It's an exchange traded fund that is based on the Deutsche Bank Liquid Commodity Index.

"Bull or bear, the grains don't care," chides Eric Roseman, editor of Commodity Trend Alert, who notes that his 'Feed the World investment theme' is tied to growing demand.

He explains, "Best of all, soft commodities maintain a negative correlation to common stocks – a great portfolio benefit and a solid hedge in down markets." Here, he looks at the iPath Dow Jones AIG Agriculture Total Return Sub-Index ETN (NYSE: JJA).

"While sub-prime has been wreaking market havoc since July, the grains have soared to new nominal highs. Agricultural commodities will remain subject to the healthy demand and tight supply conditions. Every investor must have exposure to this asset class.

"The supply picture for the grains complex continues to grow dire by the week. But despite hitting nominal highs this fall, corn, wheat and soybeans are still about 70% to 80% below their inflation-adjusted highs in 1980-1981. That means a doubling in values from these values is not only possible, but highly likely amid a growing shortage of wheat in 2008 and possibly, soybeans.

Regarding the "agricultural boom," Kevin Kerr notes, "Green Acres is still the place to be." Here, the editor of MarketWatch Global Resources looks at Archer Daniels Midland (NYSE: ADM).

Kerr explains, "Our portfolio has already seen some big gains from the agriculture, and we are getting ready to position ourselves for even more gains. How long will the boom last? The honest, albeit unsatisfying, answer is that nobody knows."

The advisor continues, "Growing interest is a good indicator that the grain markets have a good bit of wind at their back. Indicators suggest that we are seeing good momentum in the grain market investment vehicles and likely will for many years to come.

"Meanwhile, there are some key differences about the agricultural trading boom as compared to say the high tech stock frenzy. After all, food, unlike high tech stocks, is not only high in demand; it still remains way undervalued even at current record levels."