US Senator Introduced A Bill To Prohibit Communist China From Investing In Agri-business

On August 20, after a Chinese company with ties to the Communist regime, purchased farmland near a North Dakota Air Force Base, the U.S. Senator Mike Rounds, a Republican from neighbouring South Dakota, introduced a bill prohibiting companies in Communist China from investing, purchasing, or otherwise acquiring land or businesses involved in agriculture in the U.S.

The site of Fufeng’s proposed milling plant in Grand Forks, North Dakota, where is close to an Air Force base. (Photo Credit: Fufeng USA. Photo Source: scmp.com)

Reports show that the China-based Fufeng Fermentation Group has purchased 300 acres of farmland near an Air Force base in North Dakota, which is about a 90-minute drive to the Canadian border. Fufeng, a global leading bio-fermentation company tied to the Communist China regime, said it would build a $700 million-dollar corn processing plant, and create job opportunities for logistics, trucking and other services.

Senator Rounds believes the acquisition by the Chinese company will pose a threat to U.S. national security.

The US Air Force Major Jeremy Fox also warned about Fufeng’s presence in Grand Forks in his memo circulated in April that “Some of the most sensitive elements of Grand Forks exist with the digital uplinks and downlinks inherent with unmanned air systems and their interaction with space-based assets.”

On July 1st, the House of Representatives Elise Stefanik introduced a bill for the Promoting Agriculture Safeguards and Security Act (PASS). Senator Rounds’ bill retains key provisions of the Stefanik’s version and adds additional language related to foreign investment, acquiring agricultural land and the Secretary of Agriculture’s reports.

Notably, the Senator Rounds’ legislation also blacklists Russia, Iran, and North Korea, along with China, from investing in U.S. agriculture business.