Latest news with #NationalFarmSecurityActionPlan
The Star
6 days ago
- Business
- The Star
Trump admin increasing scrutiny of Chinese, other foreign farmland ownership in US
US President Donald Trump's administration is expanding scrutiny of Chinese and other foreign ownership of American farmland and starting to cancel agricultural contracts with entities from 'countries of concern' amid apprehension over the national security risks of such foreign involvement. As part of a new seven-part National Farm Security Action Plan, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins told reporters on Tuesday that 'swift legislative and executive action' would be taken at 'every level of government' to 'ban the purchase of American farmland by Chinese nationals and other foreign adversaries'. The Agriculture Department will also target research and innovation programmes with foreign countries 'that do not have our best interests in mind'. Rollins said that the department has already cancelled seven active agreements with entities from countries of concern – a designation that includes China, Iran, Russia, North Korea – and will continue to cancel them, along with removing foreign citizens from federal contracts. 'American agriculture is not just about feeding our families, but about protecting our nation and standing up to foreign adversaries who are buying our farmland, stealing our research and creating dangerous vulnerabilities in the very systems that sustain us,' Rollins said, citing China as a 'hostile regime' that sees the American way of life as a 'profound and existential threat'. The Agriculture Department, according to Rollins, is coordinating with the White House; the departments of Treasury, Defence, Homeland Security, and Justice; and state governors, agriculture commissioners, and local, tribal, and territorial governments to carry out the plan. Flanked by Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, White House trade counsellor Peter Navarro, Attorney General Pam Bondi, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and several Republican governors and lawmakers, Rollins added that she has officially joined the Treasury-led Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States as of Tuesday. CFIUS, as the inter-agency committee is commonly known, is responsible for reviewing transactions involving foreign investment in the US. Tuesday's announcement comes as US-China tensions have cascaded through local and state politics across the US in recent years, sparking alarm about Chinese investment and other involvement in the American agricultural sector. According to the New York-based Committee of 100, a group of prominent Chinese-Americans, 45 bills restricting foreign property ownership, some of them explicitly targeting Chinese citizens, were under consideration in 14 US states as of June 25. Last month, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, a Republican, signed legislation to restrict Chinese nationals from buying property in his state. However, the potential trade-offs of banning Chinese purchases of farmland have also been acknowledged at both national and local levels. A Republican-led legal effort to restrict Chinese entities from owning land failed in Arizona last month after a veto by the state's governor, Democrat Katie Hobbs, who argued that the bill would be 'ineffective at counter-espionage' and open the door to arbitrary enforcement. Critics of efforts to limit Chinese land investment argue that they could unfairly subject Chinese-Americans and Asian-Americans to extra scrutiny. They also point to the relatively small amount of US land owned by Chinese entities and argue that there has been little evidence of Beijing's interest in acquiring US farmland. According to a 2023 US Department of Agriculture report, Chinese individuals or businesses own about 277,336 acres (112,234 hectares) of US land – less than 1 per cent of total foreign-held acreage – with none directly registered to the Chinese government. Chinese ownership of land has come into the national spotlight several times in recent years. In 2023, a US$700 million corn mill project in Grand Forks, North Dakota, was scrapped after opposition over its Chinese owner and proximity to a military base. In a similar development that year, agrochemical and seed company Syngenta AG was ordered to divest 160 acres of farmland (65 hectares) in Arkansas within two years. That enforcement action against Syngenta, which was acquired by China National Chemical Corporation, was the first taken under legislation signed by Republican Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders restricting foreign entities from owning agricultural land in the state. Sanders was one of the governors present at Tuesday's event. In her remarks, she emphasised the need for a federal effort to curb land purchases by US 'enemies', noting that while states have led the way, they could not address the issue alone. Tuesday's National Farm Security Action Plan sets up a new portal for reporting foreign farm investments and raises the fine for late and false filings. Rollins also said to expect an executive order on foreign land purchases from the White House 'very soon'. Responding to Rollins' remarks, the Chinese embassy in Washington said that the US was 'overstretching' the concept of national security. 'Over the years, Chinese companies' investment in the United States has made important contributions to local jobs and growth,' said embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu. 'Politicising economic and trade investment issues violates the principles of market economy and international trade norms, only to undercut international confidence in the US market environment.' - SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
Axios
10-07-2025
- Business
- Axios
Gov. Sanders joins USDA Secretary to push farm security plan
Framing food as a matter of national security, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders joined Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and others in Washington, D.C., Tuesday to announce a new plan — part of a broader geopolitical Trump-era push. The big picture: The National Farm Security Action Plan, touted as a part of the "Make Agriculture Great Again" initiative, would block farmland sales to "Chinese nationals and other foreign adversaries," crack down on agro-terrorism, and prioritize U.S. producers in federal loan and food safety programs, Rollins said. More industry innovations to increase productivity are called for, while protecting the country's agricultural intellectual property. It paves the way for Rollins' department to work with the Department of Defense, Homeland Security, the U.S. attorney general, Congress and others with an America-first agenda. What they said: "American agriculture is not just about feeding our families, but about protecting our nation and standing up to foreign adversaries who are buying our farmland, stealing our research and creating dangerous vulnerabilities in the very systems that sustain us," Rollins said at the announcement. "A country has to be able to feed itself, fuel itself, and fight for itself to truly be free," Sanders said at the event. Flashback: Arkansas was the first state to enforce a law targeting land ownership by foreign adversaries. In 2023, Attorney General Tim Griffin said he would require a Chinese state-owned company to sell 160 acres. State lawmakers this year amended a law to, in some circumstances, prevent a foreign party-controlled businesses from leasing land or holding an interest in property near essential infrastructure. " This action plan puts America's farmers, families and future first — exactly where they belong," Rollins stated in the USDA's news release. The other side: Some U.S. farmers disagree with the White House's approach to agriculture so far. The New York Times this week reported that one silo operation is trying to sell a glut of Kansas grain as dog food due to cutbacks on foreign aid programs that served as a market for decades. Wheat prices are down $1.50 per bushel since February, below the price farmers need to break even. "I would lay a huge amount of that right at the feet of Donald J. Trump," Kansas wheat farmer Vance Ehmke told the Times.
Miami Herald
09-07-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
China Issues Warning Over Trump Farmland Ban
China warned the Trump Administration that the move to ban it and other foreign adversaries from purchasing farmland in the U.S. "will only backfire". "The United States overstretched the concept of national security in restraining other countries' and entities' rights to purchase land," Mao Ning, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson, said at a press briefing on Wednesday, July 9. Mao said the ban, part of the "National Farm Security Action Plan" unveiled by U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins on Tuesday, July 8, is "against international trade rules". "We urge the United States to stop politicizing economic and trade affairs," Mao said. This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow. Related Articles Donald Trump Threatened Putin and Xi He Would Bomb Moscow, Beijing: AudioChina Reacts to Laser Accusation by US's NATO AllyChinese Man Accused of Hacking and Stealing Covid Research Arrested-FBIVietnam Intercepts China Research Ship Near Coast 2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
New Indian Express
09-07-2025
- Business
- New Indian Express
Beijing decries 'discriminatory' ban on Chinese purchases of US farmland
BEIJING: Beijing condemned on Wednesday new restrictions by Washington on Chinese purchases of US farmland as "discriminatory" and violating international trade rules. The Trump administration said this week that the United States would begin restricting purchases of farmland by Chinese nationals and other "foreign adversaries". Mao Ning, a spokeswoman for China's foreign ministry, condemned the restrictions as "a typical discriminatory practice that violates the principles of a market economy and international economic and trade rules and will ultimately harm the US's own interests". "We urge the US to immediately stop politicising economic, trade and investment issues," she said. US Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins unveiled the National Farm Security Action Plan on Tuesday, citing national security concerns and referring to "Chinese Communist acquisition of American farmland". Rollins said the Trump administration also planned to "claw back what has already been purchased by China and other foreign adversaries". China ranks number 20 on a list of foreign owners of agricultural land, holding 277,336 acres (112,234 hectares) at the end of 2023, according to the US Department of Agriculture. Among the largest Chinese owners of US farmland is Smithfield Foods, which was purchased by a Chinese company, WH Group, in 2013.
Straits Times
09-07-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
China decries ‘discriminatory' ban on Chinese purchases of US farmland
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox The Trump administration planned to claw back what has already been purchased by China and other foreign adversaries. BEIJING - Beijing condemned on July 9 new restrictions by Washington on Chinese purchases of US farmland as 'discriminatory' and violating international trade rules. The Trump administration said this week that the United States would begin restricting purchases of farmland by Chinese nationals and other 'foreign adversaries'. Ms Mao Ning, a spokeswoman for China's foreign ministry, condemned the restrictions as 'a typical discriminatory practice that violates the principles of a market economy and international economic and trade rules and will ultimately harm the US' own interests'. 'We urge the US to immediately stop politicising economic, trade and investment issues,' she said. US Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins unveiled the National Farm Security Action Plan on July 8, citing national security concerns and referring to 'Chinese Communist acquisition of American farmland'. Ms Rollins said the Trump administration also planned to 'claw back what has already been purchased by China and other foreign adversaries'. China ranks number 20 on a list of foreign owners of agricultural land, holding 112,234ha at the end of 2023, according to the US Department of Agriculture. Among the largest Chinese owners of US farmland is Smithfield Foods, which was purchased by a Chinese company, WH Group, in 2013. AFP
