Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins issued a warning Tuesday during an appearance on Fox News, raising concerns over the increasing foreign ownership of U.S. farmland and its implications for national security.

Speaking with anchor Bret Baier on Special Report, Rollins said the trend could lead to serious long-term consequences for the United States.

“This is a massive, massive challenge, I believe, for our country. And it isn’t just a challenge for our farmers and our farmland. It’s a national security issue. Food security is national security,” Rollins told Baier.

Her comments follow recent data from the American Farm Bureau Federation, which reported in January that foreign investors held 45.85 million acres of U.S. agricultural land as of 2023.

That figure represents 3.61% of all U.S. agricultural land and marks a 12.2% increase in foreign holdings since 2021.

Baier noted during the segment that foreign ownership of American assets rose 85% in the 13 years leading up to 2023, highlighting a broader trend that has sparked growing concern among lawmakers and security officials.

Rollins emphasized the potential consequences of continued foreign acquisitions, referencing historical examples of national decline tied to food insecurity.

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“When we can’t feed our own people, then you see the great decline of other great civilizations across the world and across history. So I believe personally that this is one of the most important challenges that we’re going to be facing,” she said.

Rollins said that addressing the issue would require coordination at both the state and federal levels.

She pointed to actions already taken by states like Arkansas and South Dakota as examples of how states are beginning to confront the issue directly.

“We’ve already begun to think through what solutions look like. I am a massive 10th Amendment supporter, the laboratories of democracy. The states have already begun to make significant moves – Arkansas, South Dakota, and others – on this exact issue,” Rollins said.

“But I think that we, at the federal government, as much as I like to push things back to the people, that that is something we’re going to really need to look closely at. I’ve already begun conversations on the Hill about just that,” she added.

According to the Farm Bureau report, Canadian investors hold the largest share of foreign-owned U.S. farmland, accounting for 33.5% of all foreign-held agricultural land.

Other countries with significant ownership stakes include the Netherlands, Italy, the United Kingdom, and Germany.

Texas has the highest total acreage of foreign-owned farmland at 5.7 million acres, which accounts for approximately 3.6% of the state’s total privately held agricultural land.

Maine, however, has the highest proportion, with over 21% of its agricultural land owned by foreign entities — most of which are forest products and timber companies.

In Hawaii, 17% of the state’s agricultural land is foreign-owned, with most of those holdings related to investments in renewable energy.

Rollins’ comments add to a growing conversation in Washington over the role foreign interests play in U.S. food production and land control.

As Congress prepares for upcoming agriculture and national security legislation, the issue of foreign land ownership is expected to remain a key topic of debate.