5 Best Food Stocks To Invest In 2014

Ethan Miller/Getty ImagesDrought and increased water demand spurred by explosive population growth in the Southwest has caused the water level at Lake Mead, which supplies water to Las Vegas, Arizona and Southern California, to drop. Terrible droughts. Vast wildfires. Superstorm Sandy. Extreme weather is one of the most obvious negative results of climate change, and when it reaches "natural disaster" proportions, it can affect everything from our food supply to our homes and businesses, to our overall economic well-being. People who are concerned by climate change say all signs point to more extreme weather events like those noted above. Let's not forget that Superstorm Sandy was first dubbed "Frankenstorm" -- it shocked even weather experts with its unprecedented formation. In fact, last year was the warmest year on record, and the second most extreme weather year in U.S. history, according to sustainability advocacy group Ceres. After last year's frightening developments, which only foreshadow greater climate-related problems and dangers, Earth Day 2013 seems more important than ever. And lately all eyes are on big business and how companies can do more to stop harming Mother Earth. Scary Math

Best Managed Healthcare Companies To Buy Right Now: BRF SA (BRFS)

BRF - Brasil Foods S.A. (BRF), incorporated on August 18, 1934, is a food company, which focuses on the production and sale of poultry, pork, beef cuts, milk, dairy products and processed food products under several brands. The Company�� processed products include marinated, frozen, whole and cut Chester rooster and turkey meats, specialty meats, frozen processed meats, frozen prepared entrees, portioned products and sliced products. It also sells margarine, juices, soy products, animal feed, fresh pasta, sweet specialties and sandwiches. During the year ended December 31, 2010, it launched 333 new products, including Meu Menu (My Menu) portfolio, which is targeted at single people.

Poultry

The Company produces frozen whole and cut poultries, partridges and quail. During 2010, it sold 1,895 thousand tons of frozen chicken and other poultry products. During 2010, it produced 1,694 million day-old chicks, including chickens, Chester roosters, turkeys, partridge and quail. It hatches these eggs in its 25 hatcheries. As of December 31, 2010, it had a fully automated slaughtering capacity of 31.2 million heads of poultry per week.

Pork and Beef

The Company produces frozen pork and beef cuts, such as loins and ribs, and whole carcasses. During 2010, it sold 427 thousand tons of pork and beef cuts. Iits sales of pork cuts are to its export markets. As of December 31, 2010, it had a beef slaughtering capacity of 1,797 heads per week.

Milk

The Company produces pasteurized and ultra-high temperature (UHT) milk, which it sells in its domestic market. During 2010, it sold 873 thousand tons of pasteurized and UHT milk. It produces dairy products in 15 plants. It receives milk from a network of over 11,000 milk producers in more than 553 cities.

Processed Food Products

The Company produces processed foods, such as marinated, frozen chicken, Chester rooster and turkey meat, specialty meats, frozen processed foo! ds, frozen prepared entrees, dairy products, portioned products and sliced products. During 2010, it sold 2,472 thousand tons of processed foods. It processes pork to produce specialty meats, such as sausages, ham products, bologna, frankfurters, salamis, bacon and cold meats. It also processes chicken and other poultry to produce specialty meats, such as chicken sausages, chicken hot dogs and chicken bologna. It produces a range of frozen processed poultry, beef and pork products, including hamburgers, steaks, breaded meat products, kibes, meatballs and ready-to-eat snacks. It also produces soy-based vegetarian products, such as hamburgers and breaded products. It produces marinated and seasoned chickens, roosters and turkeys.

The Company produces several varieties of lasagna and pizza. It produces the meat used in these products and buys other raw materials in the domestic market, except for the durum flour used to make the noodles for the lasagna, which it imports. It sells a range of frozen vegetables, such as broccoli, cauliflower, peas, French beans, French fries and cassava fries, through its Escolha Saudavel line of products. It produces a range of pies and pastries, such as chicken and heart-of-palm pies and lime pies. It produces the meat, sauces and toppings used in its pies and pastries, and it purchases other raw materials, such as heart-of-palm, lime and other fillings from third parties.

Other

The Company produces animal feed mainly to feed poultry and hogs raised by it. It also sells a portion of its animal feed production to its integrated outgrowers or to unaffiliated customers. It produces a range of soy-based products, including soy meal and refined soy flour.

The Company competes with Sadia, Aurora, Marfig, Danone, Nestle, Paulista, Frangosul, Plamplona and Aurora.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By MONEYMORNING.COM]

  And with very quick gains of 9% in BRF SA (NYSE ADR: BRFS), 5.2% in South American agricultural play Adecoagro SA (NYSE: AGRO) and 1.6% in high-tech agribusiness player Neogen Corp. (Nasdaq: NEOG), we're doing well with our plays on (pockets of) accelerating U.S. inflation.

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  BRF S.A. (NYSE: BRFS) should be safe on the surface as a meat-producing and dairy giant. Apparently being defensive doesn’t help either. At $18.50, its 52-week range is $18.34 to $26.35. This ADR is down just over 10% so far in 2014.

5 Best Food Stocks To Invest In 2014: SAP AG(SAP)

SAP AG provides business software primarily in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Americas, and the Asia Pacific Japan region. The company?s products includes SAP Business Suite software, which supports large organizations in their core business operations, such as supplier relationship, production, warehouse management, sales, administration, and customer relationship; SAP Business All-in-One, a business management software that assists midsize companies in managing various business functions, including financials, human resources, procurement, inventory, manufacturing, logistics, product development, sales, and marketing; SAP Business One, a business management application for small businesses; and SAP Business ByDesign, an on-demand solution for integrated business management applications. Its products also comprises SAP BusinessObjects Edge business intelligence and enterprise performance management solutions; Xcelsius, a data visualization software; Crystal Reports, which helps users design interactive reports; Sybase IQ, an optimized analytics server designed to deliver results for business intelligence, analytics, data warehousing, and reporting solutions; SAP solutions for sustainability; and SAP NetWeaver technology platform, which integrates information and business processes across various technologies and organizational structures. In addition, the company offers industry and solution-focused, business transformation, information technology transformation, custom development, and support services; and program, project management, quality assurance, and education and certification services. It sells its products through its subsidiaries and resellers. SAP AG has a strategic relationship with Cap Gemini S.A. to develop and deploy enterprise mobility solutions. The company was formerly known as SAP Aktiengesellschaft Systeme, Anwendungen, Produkte in der Datenverarbeitung. SAP AG was founded in 1972 and is headquartered in Walldorf , Germany.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Sarah Jones]

  SAP AG (SAP) climbed 1.2 percent to 57.36 euros and Cap Gemini SA (CAP) gained 1.8 percent to 39.95 euros as peer Infosys Ltd. surged the most in six months in Mumbai trading after first-quarter profit rose and the company�� sales forecast in dollar terms beat analyst estimates.

• [By Julianne Pepitone]

  BlackBerry (BBRY) is, at least temporarily, pinning its hopes on Chen, who successfully turned around the struggling enterprise software maker Sybase and sold it to SAP (SAP) in 2010.

• [By Bryan Murphy]

  If there's one thing that Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL) may have forgotten this year that, fortunately, they're remembering now, it's that even a bad quarter for ORCL is still better than a great quarter for, say a competitor like SAP AG (NYSE:SAP) or Intuit Inc. (NASDAQ:INTU). While SAP and INTU are fine companies, neither of them offer the valuable and reliable growth prospects that Oracle do at this point. Better still, of the three, ORCL shares look far better positioned than Intuit or SAP AG do to stage a year-end (and year-beginning) breakout.

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  With the key back-to-school season upon us, Oxford is working to boost its sales opportunities. Last month, the company chose to use tech giant SAP's (NYSE: SAP  ) Hybris suite of commerce support products to help it boost its already-growing online business. With the ability to add in-store kiosks to its existing Internet presence, Oxford's Tommy Bahama stores hope that giving their customers as many ways to buy as possible will help increase revenue.

5 Best Food Stocks To Invest In 2014: Pilgrim's Pride Corporation(PPC)

Pilgrim's Corp. produces, processes, markets, and distributes fresh and frozen chicken products to retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators primarily in the United States. Its fresh chicken products consist of refrigerated (non-frozen) whole or cut-up chicken; and pre-marinated or non-marinated, as well as prepackaged case-ready chicken, which includes various combinations of freshly refrigerated, whole chickens, and chicken parts. The company also offers a range of prepared chicken products, including portion-controlled breast fillets, tenderloins and strips, delicatessen products, salads, formed nuggets and patties, and bone-in chicken parts. In addition, it exports whole chickens and chicken parts to approximately 95 countries, including Mexico, Russia, Puerto Rico, and China. The company was formerly known as Pilgrim's Pride Corporation. Pilgrim's Corp. was founded in 1945 and is headquartered in Greeley, Colorado. Pilgrim's Corp. operates as a subsidiary of JBS USA Holdings, Inc.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Dan Caplinger]

  Finally, beyond the Dow, Pilgrim's Pride (NASDAQ: PPC  ) soared 22% on apparent speculation that the poultry giant might be next on the chopping block as a target for a big acquisition. The proposed buyout of pork producer Smithfield Foods (NYSE: SFD  ) by a Chinese company was controversial in large part because of the geopolitical implications of international buyers purchasing U.S. food-industry assets, but business analysts have rightly looked instead at the implications for further consolidation in the industry. With no formal announcement from Pilgrim's Pride, today's move could invite scrutiny from the SEC and other regulators should any sort of definitive buyout bid materialize in the days to come.

• [By Jon C. Ogg]

  It is not that frequent that an analyst downgrade sparks a 7% drop in a stock. That is why we are focusing on this big analyst downgrade in Tyson Foods Inc. (NYSE: TSN). BofA/Merrill Lynch downgraded Tyson to Neutral from Buy with a $32 price target. The prior target was $33 on the stock. The ramifications are strong enough that shares of rival Pilgrim’s Pride Corp. (NYSE: PPC) traded lower just as though they are the same company.

5 Best Food Stocks To Invest In 2014: Creative Edge Nutrition Inc (FITX)

Creative Edge Nutrition Inc. (CENergy), formerly Laufer Bridge Enterprises Inc, incorporated on January 10, 2008, is engaged in the development, marketing and sales of nutraceuticals and health supplements. The Company�� product categories include lean, energy, essentials, mass, vitamins and apparel. In July 2012, it acquired Innovative Fulfillment Corp. In August 2012, the Company acquired SCD Enterprises, LLC. In September 2012, the Company acquired A-Z-Nutrition.com. In September 2012, the Company acquired Sci-Fit and Nature's Science product brands. In March 2013, it announced its entrance into the Medical Marijuana Sector through Hemp Protein Powder, Naturals Line, Hemp-plex and Chia-plex. In May 2013, Creative Edge Nutrition Inc acquired Canadian Nutrition Super Stores.

Metabolic Xtreme utilizes the technology and advancement in weight loss technology. Cenergy�� Amino Acid Complex is the supplement for athletes, bodybuilders and anyone who's trying to live a healthy lifestyle.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Peter Graham]

  Small cap stocks CD International Enterprises Inc (OTCMKTS: CDII), Creative Edge Nutrition Inc (OTCMKTS: FITX) and Metrospaces Inc (OTCMKTS: MSPC) have all been the subject of recent as well as past paid for stock promotions. Of course, there is nothing wrong with properly disclosed stock promotions or investor awareness campaigns, but they can and do often backfire on unwary investors and traders alike. With that in mind, will investors and traders come out winners with these small caps or should they just be left to the promoters? Here is a quick reality check: