The Blubber

Indiana has pushed forward a bill to ban China, other ‘foreign adversaries’ from buying farmland.


Proposed House Bill 1183 aims to prevent citizens or entities associated with "foreign adversaries" from acquiring or leasing agricultural land in Indiana, citing national security concerns. The bill also establishes specific guidelines for the proximity of property owned by a "prohibited person" to a military facility.

State Senator Jean Leising, a Republican member of the Senate's Agriculture Committee, emphasized the bill's significance in safeguarding Indiana's entirety. The legislation, introduced by Representative Kendell Culp in January, received unanimous support from both Democrats and Republicans in the state House of Representatives earlier this month and was subsequently endorsed by the Senate's Agriculture Committee.

The bill in Indiana relies on the US Commerce Department's list of adversaries, which includes Russia, North Korea, Iran, Venezuela, Cuba, and China. Culp noted that approximately 2.2% of Indiana's land is currently owned by foreign countries.

Indiana comprises over 80% of farmland and forests, according to data from the state Department of Agriculture. A startling report from the US Department of Agriculture revealed that foreign countries possess around 40 million acres of the United States' total 1.3 billion acres of farmland. China alone claims ownership of 384,235 acres, with a single Chinese billionaire owning over half of this land.