There has been much concern that American farmland is being bought up by countries who are either hostile to the U.S. or trying to beat us economically, such as China. A new amendment has been introduced that would ban China, Iran, Russia, and North Korea from owning U.S acreage.
It was introduced by Washington Representative Dan Newhouse and is attached to the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies FY2023 Appropriations Bill. It is a second attempt after the Senate failed to pass the first attempt. Newhouse says that now with Russia?s invasion of Ukraine, it may have a stronger foothold in both chambers.
There is no law on the books that disallows foreign countries from buying U.S. land, and with a country like China, which uses resources to buy foreign infrastructures, it is an alarming gap in our security. There are six states that disallow foreign purchases, but they can be circumvented under current law.
China, Russia, and Iran account for 200,000 acres of foreign-owned ag-land. That is seven-tenths of one percent. Of that amount, almost all of it belongs to China.
60 percent of China?s landownership came when they purchased Smithfield Foods. Allied countries own about 35 million acres of land in the U.S. This includes Canada, the Netherlands, Italy, and Germany.
