James Jan-Feb 2024 web - Flipbook - Page 69
hen you go to the
grocery store or
pick up a new pair
of jeans at the mall,
you probably don’t put much thought
into where that product came from—
much less who produced it. But if
the pandemic taught us anything,
it’s that our supply chains and food
production are far too dependent on
foreign countries. Producing more of
our own food, fiber and shelter here
at home will be critically important
over the coming years.
Over the past few years, dozens
of states have passed legislation
restricting or banning foreign adversaries from purchasing American
farmland, and I believe it’s past
time for Georgia to lead the charge
by adding its name to the list. As
Georgia’s Agriculture Commissioner,
I look forward to working with our
Legislature to do just that during the
2024 General Assembly session to
protect our farmers, our farmland
and our state’s No. 1 industry.
While it may not be top of mind
for most Americans, agriculture
and food security are vital parts of
our national security. Americans
have access to the safest, most
affordable, and most abundant
food supply in the world thanks
to the tireless work of American
farmers who provide the food, fiber,
and shelter we all rely on. Here in
Georgia, agriculture generates more
than $70 billion in economic impact
annually and employing more than
400,000 Georgians. Our state is
also one of the most agriculturally
diverse. Our farmers grow a wide
variety of crops on more than 9.9
million acres that account for more
than two percent of all U.S. agricultural sales.
However, if we cannot produce
food, fiber and shelter right here at
home, within our own borders, we’re
less safe as a community, less safe as
a state and less safe as a nation.
Chinese ownership of U.S.
agricultural land is increasing at an
alarming rate, and this increase poses a significant threat not only to the
livelihoods of American farmers and
producers but to America’s national
security. In the past decade, Chinese
investors and business entities have
increased their holdings of American
farmland by over 1,000 percent, from
$81 million in 2010 to more than $1.9
billion in 2021. Chinese landowners
currently control 383,000 acres of
United States farmland, and their
investments are only growing.
Earlier this year, Fufeng Group,
a Chinese company with deep ties
to the Chinese Communist Party,
attempted to build a wet corn mill in
North Dakota— 12 miles away from
Grand Forks Air Force Base. In 2021,
officials in Texas blocked a similarly
concerning development when a
Chinese billionaire with close ties
to the Chines Communist Party
attempted to purchase 100,000 acres
near McLaughlin Air Force Base. It’s
clear that China’s end goal is to buy
up U.S. farmland, control the nation’s
food supply and force us to be fully
reliant on the Communist regime for
our food production.
We cannot let this happen in
Georgia. Our agriculture industry
is the lifeblood of our state’s economy and a pillar of American food
production. We must act swiftly
and decisively to protect our state’s
number one industry and our farmland. Here at home, restricting or
banning adversaries from purchasing American farmland is the first
step in fighting back, protecting our
food supply and keeping Georgia’s
number one industry successful for
generations to come.
The author, an Ocilla native and seventh generation
south Georgia farmer, is the state Agriculture Commissioner who oversees a peanut, cotton, beef cattle
and timber operation.
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