Tag: farms

Concerns about solar encroachment on farmland grows as USDA pulls subsidies for new projects

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is pulling the plug on federal support of solar projects being developed on America’s farmland. The agency announced Tuesday that it would no longer provide taxpayer dollars for solar panels on productive farmland. 

“Our prime farmland should not be wasted and replaced with green-new-deal-subsidized solar panels,” Agriculture Secretary Brook Rollins said in the announcement. 

On-the-ground solar energy has some of the greatest land-use requirements of any energy source, coming in after hydroelectric and coal, if the latter’s mines are included. The huge swaths of land needed for solar farms make agricultural farmland attractive to developers. According to the USDA, within the last 30 years, Tennessee alone has lost over 1.2 million acres of farmland to solar farms, with another 2 million acres projected to be lost by 2027. 

“Tennesseans know that our farmland is our national security, our economic future, and our children’s heritage,” Tennessee GOP Governor Bill Lee said in a statement. 

While solar has seen explosive growth in the past few years, the Trump administration and Congress are cutting back on the subsidies that have been driving a lot of the development. Growth in the coming years could be slower. 

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USDA: 45 Million Acres of American Land Owned by Foreign Entities

Nearly 46 million acres of forest and farmland are held by foreign investors, including by countries hostile to America, according to data released by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The Foreign Farm Land Purchases map, unveiled to the public Thursday, highlights the increase of “foreign persons” buying up land across all 50 states and Puerto Rico, which many lawmakers have deemed a national security risk.

As of Dec. 31, 2023, approximately 45.8 million acres, or 71,562 square miles – slightly larger than Washington state – of American soil belongs to foreign entities.

While investors from Canada, the Netherlands, Italy and the United Kingdom cumulatively own more than 60% of that land, other foreign investors are acting on behalf of countries the U.S. considers hostile.

Chinese companies and investors, some directly involved in the Chinese Communist Party, own more than 277,335 acres of agricultural land across 30 states. Texas far outranks other states in terms of Chinese-bought land, with 123,707 acres owned. North Carolina and Missouri each have over 42,000 acres under Chinese ownership, while Utah has over 33,000 acres bought by China.

Other foreign adversaries have bought U.S. farm and forest land as well. Venezuela owns more than 90,000 acres of land across 17 states, Iran has bought more than 3,000 acres across 10 states, and Pakistan owns 2,100 acres across three states.

Additionally, over 3.08 million acres of U.S. land across 43 states are owned by foreign entities of unknown origin, with 1.38 million acres having “no foreign investor listed” and 1.69 million acres having “no predominant country code.”

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US Moves To Ban Chinese Purchases Of US Farmland Over National Security Concerns

Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins announced on July 8 that the United States will be moving to ban Chinese ownership of U.S. farmland over national security concerns.

During a press conference with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, and other top officials, Rollins said the Trump administration will work with states and use executive actions to ban ownership of U.S. agriculture by Chinese and nationals of other adversaries.

During a call with reporters on July 7, Rollins acknowledged there was no way for her agency to take back farmland owned by the Chinese and other foreign buyers.

“USDA is not in the role to be able to do that,” she said.

The national security action plan released by the Department of Agriculture (USDA) and obtained by The Epoch Times states that, “Land owned by foreign nationals—particularly those from countries of concern…or other foreign adversaries—is a potential threat to national security and future economic prosperity. USDA will ensure transparency of foreign U.S. agricultural land ownership and pursue robust and overdue updates to data collection, reporting, and analysis.”

The USDA, according to the plan, will implement reforms such as creating an online filing system to require foreign entities to report their holdings and transactions in the U.S. agricultural marketplace.

It will also work alongside Congress and states to pass and implement laws to take “action to end the direct or indirect purchase or control of American farmland by nationals from countries of concern or other foreign adversaries.”

Additionally, the USDA will sign a memorandum of understanding with the Treasury Department to “ensure regular coordination” with the agriculture secretary related to reviews by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) when it comes to foreign transactions involving the agriculture sector, according to the plan.

Rollins announced that she will sit on CFIUS, a panel that reviews foreign purchases for national security risks, beginning July 8.

Chinese ownership of U.S. farmland has been a concern in both the agricultural and national security sectors.

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What? Trump Says He’s Working on Legislation to Protect Illegal Alien Farm and Hospitality Workers – Says People Who Don’t Support Amnesty for Illegal Farm and Hospitality Workers are “Serious Radical Right People”

President Trump stunned many of his supporters during a rally at the Iowa State Fairgrounds on Thursday when he revealed that legislation is being drafted to apparently grant amnesty to some illegal aliens in the agriculture and hospitality industries.

He appeared to credit his Chief of Staff, Susie Wiles, and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins for the idea. “You’re the one that brought this whole situation up,” Trump said to Rollins from the stage.

“You had cases where, not here, but just even over the years, where people have worked for a farm, on a farm, for 14, 15 years, and they get thrown out pretty viciously, and we can’t do it,” the President told the crowd. “We’ve got to work with the farmers and people that have hotels and leisure properties too.”

However, as The Gateway Pundit reported, deportations of illegal aliens, even the so-called “noncriminals,” are working for American workers. After a major ICE raid at Glenn Valley Foods in Omaha, Nebraska, every seat in the plant’s waiting area was filled with prospective new hires, just 48 hours after federal agents cleared out the illegals, none of whom were “violent offenders.”

It is also unclear why the President wants to allow employers to break federal law. 8 U.S.C. § 1324 “makes it unlawful for any person or other entity to hire, recruit, or refer for a fee, for employment in the United States an alien knowing the alien is an unauthorized alien.”

Criticizing those who would not support this move, he said that it’s the “serious radical right People” who won’t be “quite as happy.”

Does wanting accountability for people who are living and working in our country illegally make you “radical” now?

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Trump Says Administration Working on ‘Temporary Pass’ for Illegal Immigrant Farm, Hotel Workers

President Donald Trump said on June 29 that his administration was working on a solution where farmers and hospitality business owners could potentially retain some illegal immigrant workers if they’re not involved in crime and pay taxes.

Speaking with Maria Bartiromo of Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures,” Trump said he’s trying to reconcile being both the “strongest immigration guy that there’s ever been” and also the “strongest farmers [and hotels] guy.”

“I cherish our farmers,” Trump said, adding that some of the farmworkers being deported have been working in these positions for 15 to 20 years and “are good” but possibly entered the country “incorrectly.”

“What we’re going to do is we’re going to do something for farmers, where we can let the farmer sort of be in charge,” he said.

“The farmer knows he’s not going to hire a murderer. But you know, when you go into a farm and he’s had somebody working with him for nine years, doing this kind of work—which is hard work to do, and a lot of people aren’t going to do it—and you end up destroying a farmer because you took all the people away, it’s a problem.”

Trump said he understands the farmers’ position as well as those wanting a crackdown on illegal immigration.

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Trump admin to intervene on behalf of New Jersey family trying to stop government seizure of 175-year-old farm

ANew Jersey family trying to save their 175-year-old farm from being seized by a local government are getting support from the Trump administration.

The Cranbury city government announced its intention to seize the 21-acre farm through eminent domain in order to build low-income apartments, but the Henry family is resisting.

On Tuesday, Agriculture Sec. Brooke Rollins said the power of the federal government would intercede in the case on the side of the family.

“On the phone with Andy Henry of Highland Ranch in Cranbury, NJ. The city govt has approved seizing his 175-year-old family farm via eminent domain for affordable housing units,” wrote Rollins.

“Whether the Maudes, the Henrys or others whom we will soon announce, the Biden-style government takeover of our family farms is over,” she added. “While this particular case is a city eminent domain issue, we @usda are exploring every legal option to help.”

Andy Henry says he has received many multimillion-dollar offers for the farm, but he has denied all of them.

“Didn’t matter how much money we were offered,” Henry said. “We saved the farm no matter what. We turned down all the offers to preserve the legacy for our family, city, and even state.”

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The Weaponization of Gene-Edited Mosquitoes

There are several dimensions to the mosquito crisis. The release of gene-edited male mosquitoes, coupled with the development of a dengue and malaria vaccine

But that is but the tip of the iceberg.

According to F. William Engdahl in 2018, the weaponization of insects is on the drawing board of the Pentagon:

There is strong evidence that the Pentagon, through its research and development agency, DARPA, is developing genetically modified insects that would be capable of destroying agriculture crops of a potential enemy.

The claim has been denied by DARPA, but leading biologists have sounded the alarm on what is taking place using new “gene-editing” CRISPR technology to in effect weaponize insects.

It’s like a 21st Century update of the Biblical plague of locusts, only potentially far worse.

Under the DARPA project, Genetic Alteration Agents or viruses will be introduced into the insect population to directly influence the genetic makeup of crops.

DARPA plans to use leaf hoppers, white flies, and aphids to introduce select viruses into crops. Among other dubious claims they say it will help farmers combat ‘climate change’.

What no one can answer, especially as neither the Pentagon nor the US FDA are asking, is how will the genetically engineered viruses in the insects interact with other microorganisms in the environment?

If crops are constantly being inundated by genetically modified viruses, how could this could alter the genetics and immune systems of humans who depend on the crops?

See F. William Engdahl, Why Is the Pentagon “Weaponizing Insects”? October 30, 2018

This posting includes excerpts from Jordan Shachtel, Amie Wek and Jamie White followed by the article of F. William Engdahl.

The World Mosquito Program plans to release five billion mosquitoes into Brazil.

“And the hope is they will help save lives. [Once] you see the reductions in disease transmission, it doesn’t seem like a horror movie any more,” Scott O’Neill, director of the World Mosquito Program” (CBC, April 2023)

Implemented concurrently with the influx of 5 billion friendly mosquitoes, Brazil approved in March 2023 a vaccine against dengue.

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Urban NYS Dems want to limit how many cows dairy farms can own in latest green push — sparking upstate-downstate beef

This new cow law is total bull.

State lawmakers from the Big Apple want to limit the number of cows on dairy farms in their latest green push – a proposal that opponents argue would cripple the industry.

The legislation, whose backers include members of the Democratic Socialists of America, would prohibit new or expanding dairy farms from reaching or exceeding 700 cows, a measure supporters said would improve the environment and help smaller family farms across the Empire State.

But the proposed moo-ve has sparked an upstate-downstate beef between lawmakers from rural and urban districts — with even Gov. Kathy Hochul viewing the bill as “insane,” according to a source close to the Democratic leader.

“Let’s be clear: this bill makes no sense,” Sen. Mark Walczyk (R-Jefferson) said in a statement.

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Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs VETOES Bill That Would Prevent China From Buying Land Near U.S. Military Bases

Arizona’s Democrat Governor Katie Hobbs has vetoed a bill that would prevent the Chinese Communist Party from buying land near strategic assets such as military bases. Whose side is this woman on?

It really seems like Democrats are hell bent on doing everything they can to weaken the United States and threaten our national security.

They can’t even agree that China shouldn’t be able to buy American land near our defense infrastructure? What the heck is going on here?

FOX News reports:

Dem governor ripped as ‘total disgrace’ after vetoing bill limiting Chinese land ownership near military bases

Arizona Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs, who is up for reelection next year, garnered backlash Tuesday after vetoing a bill aimed at preventing China from buying up land next to strategic assets, such as military bases.

Arizona state Senate Majority Leader Janae Shamp said the “politically motivated veto” was “utterly insane,” blaming Hobbs for being “an obstructionist against safeguarding our citizens from threats.”

However, Hobbs said the bill, S.B. 1109, was “ineffective at counter-espionage” and did not “directly protect” American military assets in the state…

“Governor Hobbs’s veto of SB 1109 hangs an ‘Open for the CCP’ sign on Arizona’s front door, allowing Communist China to buy up American land near critical assets like Luke Air Force Base, Palo Verde nuclear power plant, and Taiwan Semiconductor’s growing fabrication footprint,” said Michael Lucci, the CEO and founder of State Armor Action, a conservative group with a mission to develop and enact state-level solutions to global security threats.

Is anyone going to look into this?

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Eco-Fascism – 2026 Ballot Measure Seeks “End Of Farming” In Colorado

The Trump administration, focused on delivering economic growth and food production in the U.S., is attracting the opposition of zealots and degrowth monied interests alike. 

To wit; two radically authoritarian ballot measures – which have the support of initiatives and frameworks of International Governmental Organizations (IGOs) – ask Colorado and Oregon voters to give up the family dog and hand over their private property rights in what some have called “the end of farming and ranching” in the Mile High state.

The first measure, Colorado ballot initiative 2025-2026#82, reads like a dictator’s manifesto – and is essentially a carbon copy of the CCP-backed Convention on Biological Diversity’s wildlands project.

The eight-page “Colorado Wildlife and Biodiversity Protection Act” seeks to create the Wildlife and Ecosystem Conservation Commission (WECC). 

Astonishingly, the WECC would consist of nine appointed members, with the petition strictly stipulating that no member can have any financial ties to agriculture, energy, or development. The petition then goes on to (laughably) assert that these supposed “elite” members – without “financial ties” – will be appointed by universities, environmental groups, and policy institutes. Naturally,  this commission will have total control over agriculture, energy, and all future development in Colorado. 

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