(NewsNation) — Former President Donald Trump visited western Pennsylvania on Monday to speak at an event held by the Protecting America Initiative, a nonprofit spotlighting the potential risk posed by the Chinese Communist Party to the U.S. agriculture system.
If he wins in November, Trump has vowed to ban Chinese nationals from buying U.S. farmland.
“We’re going to protect it by saying you can’t do it,” Trump told media and other attendees at the event.
“It’s very easy to do, it’s a very easy thing to do. But it’s causing a lot of disruption and that’s what they want to do.
“I love the farmers,” Trump added. “I’m very comfortable with the farmers. I feel I know your business, but I haven’t plowed quite as much as you.”
Trump also said that, when he left office, he made a promise with Chinese President Xi Jinping that the country could buy $50 billion of “farm product” from the U.S.
China being part of a marijuana foreign black market in Oklahoma and amassing farmland have been concerns for Americans this year.
The latest U.S. governmental data from 2021 showed that China owns less than 1% of foreign-owned land, while Canada owns the most at over 30%.
However, China has purchased more land within the last three years. Texas tops the list for Chinese-owned land across America with 191,919 acres. The remaining top 10 is as follows:
- North Carolina – 49,050 acres
- Missouri – 43,070 acres
- Utah – 34,006 acres
- Virginia – 13,890 acres
- Florida – 13,847 acres
- Arizona – 9,982 acres
- California – 7,011 acres
- Washington – 6,582 acres
- Colorado – 3,871 acres
Currently, there is no federal law prohibiting Chinese companies or entities with ties to the Chinese Communist Party from buying U.S. farmland.
Should the CCP gain control over essential parts of the food supply chain, it could lead to future disruptions or manipulation of the supply of critical food resources, critics argue.
Last June, the Treasury Department announced proposed new rules that would give the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, known as CFIUS, the ability to block Chinese corporations from owning land near U.S. military bases.
Chinese billionaire Chen Tianqiao ranked 82nd in a list of U.S. top landowners in a report released in January after purchasing 200,000 acres of timberlands in Oregon in 2015.
A spokesperson for Kamala Harris provided NewsNation a critical statement regarding Trump’s visit to Smithton.
“Donald Trump used the White House to give handouts to wealthy corporations and foreign companies at the expense of family farmers, drive farm bankruptcies to record levels, and sacrifice small American farmers as pawns in his failed trade war with China.”
