WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced a series of actions aimed at strengthening oversight of foreign ownership of U.S. agricultural land and limiting federal program participation by entities linked to foreign adversaries.
According to the USDA, the steps are part of its National Farm Security Action Plan and are intended to increase transparency, protect domestic supply chains, and prioritize American farmers and manufacturers. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins said the actions are designed to close gaps in oversight related to foreign land ownership and federal spending.
As part of the announcement, the USDA opened an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking public comment on modernizing the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act (AFIDA). AFIDA requires foreign investors to report transactions involving U.S. agricultural land. The department said potential updates could improve verification, monitoring, and public tracking of foreign-owned farmland, as well as strengthen coordination with the U.S. Treasury on reviews involving agricultural land transfers.
The USDA reported that entities linked to foreign adversaries currently control at least 277,000 acres of agricultural land nationwide, raising concerns about food supply security, critical infrastructure, and national defense.
In addition, the department announced immediate changes to its BioPreferred Program and USDA guaranteed lending programs. Under the updates, entities and products from foreign adversary countries are no longer eligible to participate. Current participants must comply with audits or face removal from the programs. The BioPreferred Program, which supports the use of U.S.-based biobased products, is currently funded through September 30, 2026.
USDA officials said the combined actions reinforce the department’s position that agriculture is a matter of national security and that federal programs should support domestic producers rather than supply chains controlled by foreign adversaries.
