US Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins on Combating Chinese Agro-Threats and Securing Farmland

Protecting US Farmland from Foreign Adversaries

• 🇺🇸 The US Department of Agriculture is working to ban foreign purchases of American farmland, particularly by Chinese nationals and other adversaries, due to national and food security threats.
• ⚠️ Agricultural lands are viewed as potential weapons against the US by hostile regimes, with concerns over Chinese communist acquisition of farmland and theft of operational information.
• 📈 Foreign adversaries, primarily China, currently own nearly 300,000 acres of US farmland, a significant increase from about 2,500 acres in 1980.

Addressing Agro-Terrorism and Food Supply Security

• 🚫 Officials are warning Beijing is acquiring parts of the US food supply, citing China's ownership of companies like Sententa (seed company) and Smithfield Foods (pork supply).
• 🦠 The threat of agro-terrorism is serious, with the potential to disrupt the food supply through contaminated seeds or other means.
• 🗺️ A seven-point plan has been released to align federal, state, and local efforts to understand, push back against, and protect Americans from these threats.

Federal and State Strategies for Farmland Protection

• 🏛️ While states are seen as "guardians at the gate" and can act more quickly, the federal government is also moving forward on banning farmland purchases by foreign adversaries.
• 💰 A "big beautiful bill" includes provisions to exempt two million family farms from the death tax, preventing forced sales to foreign entities due to inheritance taxes.
• 🤝 The Secretary of Agriculture has been added to the CPHAS committee, which approves the sale of major American companies or farmland, indicating increased federal involvement.

Managing Livestock Trade and Immigration Concerns

• 🐎 The US has shut down live cattle, bison, and horse trade through the southern border due to a New World screwworm infestation affecting livestock in Mexico.
• 🚫 This measure was taken after previous efforts to push back the pest partnering with Mexico were partially successful, but the threat has re-emerged near the border.
• 🧑‍🌾 Regarding farm labor, President Trump is working on a program to exempt some workers from deportation, emphasizing that it is not amnesty but a way to support farmers who rely on these workers, while also prioritizing an American workforce through automation.