Ricketts and Fetterman Unite to Block China's U.S. Farmland Purchases

In a rare display of bipartisan unity, Senators Pete Ricketts (R-NE) and John Fetterman (D-PA), along with a coalition of lawmakers, are pushing the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure (AFIDA) Improvements Act to tighten the reins on foreign ownership of American farmland. This legislation, born from a 2024 Government Accountability Office report highlighting gaps in oversight, aims to fortify national security by ensuring that the land feeding America doesn’t slip into the hands of foreign adversaries.

The bill targets a growing concern: the infiltration of U.S. agricultural supply chains by countries like China, whose ownership of American farmland has skyrocketed from just over 13,000 acres in 2010 to nearly 384,000 acres by 2021. As Senator Ricketts put it, 'American farmland should remain in the hands of American farmers and ranchers, not foreign adversaries.' It’s a sentiment echoed across party lines, with food security increasingly viewed as a cornerstone of national defense.

The AFIDA Improvements Act would mandate stricter reporting for foreign entities holding even a 1% interest in U.S. agricultural land, enhance data-sharing between federal agencies, and modernize the USDA’s tracking systems with an online platform. Co-sponsors like Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) warn of the risks posed by foreign powers gaining a foothold in America’s breadbasket, while Representative Don Bacon (R-NE) emphasizes the need for robust processes to thwart potential threats.

This legislative push is part of a broader movement in Congress to curb foreign land purchases, especially near sensitive military sites. Other proposals, like the PASS Act and the Not One More Inch or Acre Act, aim to outright ban entities from countries like China, Russia, and Iran from acquiring U.S. land. With tensions simmering over global influence, the battle for America’s soil is heating up—and it’s clear lawmakers aren’t just tilling the ground for votes.