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Foreign ag land ownership bill introduced in U.S. House

New legislation in the U.S. House would crack down on U.S. farmland purchases by some foreign entities.

South Dakota Republican Dusty Johnson tells Brownfield the bill would restrict purchases that could affect the nation’s food supply, research facilities, and military bases.

“My interest in foreign investment gets really thin in a hurry when we are talking about our adversaries,” he said. “China is not our friend. I think when it comes to areas like food, medicine, and critical minerals, we should not be giving China any control over how our country conducts business.”

The Protecting U.S. Farmland and Sensitive Sites From Foreign Adversaries Act would allow the Secretary of Agriculture to vote in Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) reviews involving farmland or agriculture technology.

Johnson says he expects the bill to gain bipartisan support.

“We understand from the left end of the spectrum to the right just how big of a threat the Chinese Communist Party can be,” he said. “We want to make sure that when we are doing business with China that it serves American interests.”

The legislation would also require CFIUS to consider U.S. food security in its national security reviews.