Ag Policy Blog

USDA on Monday published a notice in the Federal Register looking to update reporting requirement for foreign land ownership under the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA).

The Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking asks stakeholders to comment on possible changes to AFIDA, which was last updated in 2006.

The proposed changes come as Congress and state lawmakers have demanded more updates and better reporting on foreign ownership from USDA, spurred mainly by Chinese ownership of agricultural land.

Lawmakers across the country over the past five years have put a greater emphasis on reporting and blocking foreign ownership of land by Chinese investors. Congress also has sought to restrict Chinese purchases of agricultural land as well. In some cases, companies with Chinese parent ownership have faced state penalties for failing to file with the state despite meeting USDA filing guidelines. That was highlighted when Arkansas officials fined Syngenta $280,000 and ordered the company to sell more than 150 acres from a research farm in the state for not filing its ownership interests with state officials.

FOREIGN HOLDINGS REPORT

USDA's latest report on foreign agricultural land holdings shows people from outside the country own nearly 45 million acres of land, as of the end of 2023. That takes up about 3.5% of all privately-held agricultural land. Foreign holdings also increased by more than 1.5 million acres from 2022.

Nearly half of foreign land holdings, 48%, are forest land with 29% being cropland and 21% pastures.

Canadian investors make up about one-third of all foreign holdings, or 15.3 million acres, followed by the Netherlands, Italy, the United Kingdom and Germany.

Texas (5.6 million acres), Maine (3.5 million acres) and Colorado (2.5 million acres) are the largest states for foreign ownership. The majority of foreign-own landed in Texas and Maine are forest while cropland is the largest holding in Colorado.

Chinese investors held 277,336 acres at the end of 2023. Two companies, Murphy Brown LLC (Smithfield Foods) and Brazos Highland Properties LP – combine to hold nearly 64% of that Chinese-held land. Five states make up the 93% of Chinese land holdings: Texas (123,708 acres); North Carolina (44,263 acres); Missouri (42,905 acres); Utah (33,035 acres) and Florida (12,798 acres).

Chinese interests filed reports for 15 purchases in 2023, mostly from Syngenta Seeds LLC and Murphy Brown LLC.

FEDERAL REGISTER NOTICE

In its Federal Register posting, USDA stated the department is aware of gaps in AFIDA regulations such as "multiple exclusions in the definitions of agricultural land" and defining "any interest" such as leases for less than 10 years. USDA also does not receive of have detailed information to create a geospatial map of property boundaries.

There are also open-ended questions over the definition of "significant interest or substantial interest" and the regulation "treats countries with longstanding ties to the United States the same as countries designated as foreign adversaries by the Secretary of Commerce."

USDA also doesn't have a mechanism to require more detailed ownership information such as through complex corporate structures or multiple holding companies.

In the 2023 AFIDA report, it noted if investors from multiple countries are listed and "no predominate country" is determined then ownership from a specific country could be under reported.

The department requests whether stakeholders see a need to change definitions of "agricultural land," "any interest," and "foreign person" or whether the current definitions are sufficient.

Also, how should USDA treat reports from people countries designated as foreign adversaries? Should that trigger different standards for filing requirements?

What questions should be considered about providing details about foreign persons with indirect interest in agricultural lands?

Also, how can USDA ensure the information it receives is complete and verifiable?

Comments on changes to AFIDA are due by Jan. 28, 2026.

To see the full filing, go to the Federal Register.

Chris Clayton can be reached at Chris.Clayton@dtn.com

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