Canada and Europe Dominate U.S. Foreign Land Ownership

In the run-up to the U.S. presidential elections, both candidates have outlined their visions for agricultural policy - which do differ significantly. After the publication of the traditional Farm Bureau questionnaire in mid-September, former President Donald Trump is speaking today at an event in rural Pennsylvania on proposed bans of Chinese agricultural land purchases. Data from the USDA shows that at the end of 2022, 20 million acres of U.S. farmland, or 2.2 percent, were foreign owned. China’s share was just a fraction of that and sinking.

Chinese investors or U.S. corporations with Chinese shareholders owned just around 500,000 acres of U.S. land at the end of 2022 - 7 percent less than at the end of 2021. Much more was owned by Canadian and European entities, for example from the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Italy and Germany. Experts said that they saw no threat from Chinese land and agricultural land purchases. However, the purchase of land close to military installations by foreign investors was recently restricted under the Biden Administration, following controversies around Chinese purchases. Some states have also taken action in this regard.

Trump also said he wants new tariffs against China and that they could be as high as 60 percent of the goods' value. Trump's first trade war sent shockwaves through business and farming communities in 2018 and 2019, before a truce with China in early 2020 - an agreement that the Biden Administration decided to see through. While Trump has pledged aggressive action on agricultural policy like tariffs, Harris said she would focus on strengthening ties with other countries and expanding markets as a tool to counter unfair Chinese trade practices. The two candidates also differ on immigration, where Harris wants reforms to alleviate worker shortages, while Trump is sticking to his tough stance on migration. While Harris spoke out in favor of climate protection and biodiversity, Trump was dismissive of the topics.