USDA Moves to Curb Foreign Ownership of U.S. Farmland

As part of its newly released National Farm Security Action Plan, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced a series of measures to limit foreign ownership of American farmland, citing national security concerns.

The plan identifies farmland held by nationals of “countries of concern” as a strategic risk. USDA will strengthen enforcement of the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA) and modernize its reporting system.

A new online filing platform will be launched to capture more detailed data, including geospatial information and intended land use. Civil penalties for late or false disclosures will also increase.

While AFIDA’s original mandate is limited to farmland, the National Farm Security Action Plan extends its relevance by:

• Enhancing transparency of land purchases tied to processing infrastructure;
• Integrating USDA into national security reviews of agricultural business transactions via CFIUS;
• Proposing new policy tools and public reporting channels targeting foreign ownership risks in the food supply chain.

USDA plans to work with Congress and state governments to prohibit direct or indirect land purchases by entities tied to foreign adversaries.

Additionally, the department will formalize coordination with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) through a memorandum with the Treasury Department to monitor transactions involving farmland and agriculture-related businesses.

To support enforcement, USDA will establish a public-facing portal for reporting potential violations of AFIDA or foreign influence in agricultural transactions. Anonymous submissions will be permitted, and follow-up actions may be taken by USDA investigators.

Little farmland China-owned

As of the latest USDA and AFIDA data (2023), foreign investors hold about 45.9 million acres of U.S. agricultural land—roughly 3.6% of privately held farmland. Canada holds the largest share, accounting for approximately 33–34% of all foreign-held farmland (~15.3 million acres; ~1.2% of total U.S. farmland), followed by Netherlands, Italy, UK and Germany.  

China ranks low among foreign owners of U.S. farmland. As of December 31, 2023, Chinese entities held roughly 277,336 acres, which represents about 0.02% of all privately owned U.S. agricultural land, according to the USDA's figures.      

Processing infrastructure another story

Food Processing is far more subject to foreign ownership.   For example foreign-owned companies— Chinese-owned Smithfield and Brazil-based JBS—together account for about 40% of U.S. pork production .

While AFIDA historically covers foreign ownership of agricultural land, the USDA now interprets the scope of foreign control to include associated infrastructure when tied to land ownership (e.g., slaughterhouses, grain elevators, or processing plants sited on farmland).   

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