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Friday, Jun 26
Save US Farms
The War Room

The crisis, by the numbers.

They sell the dirt by the acre, squeeze the farmer by the bushel, and bury the family in court. This is the ledger — foreign land grabs, gutted commodity prices, and the bankruptcies stacking up while Washington looks away. Updated as the data comes in.

43.8M
Acres foreign-held
10
States tracked
134
Ch.12 filings, 2024
Commodities
Corn 4.42 $/bu -3.1%
Soybeans 9.75 $/bu -5.4%
Wheat 5.38 $/bu + 1.2%
Cattle 183.50 $/cwt + 8.7%
Milk 21.80 $/cwt + 4.3%
Diesel 3.71 $/gal -2.8%
Corn 4.42 $/bu -3.1%
Soybeans 9.75 $/bu -5.4%
Wheat 5.38 $/bu + 1.2%
Cattle 183.50 $/cwt + 8.7%
Milk 21.80 $/cwt + 4.3%
Diesel 3.71 $/gal -2.8%

Source: USDA NASS Agricultural Prices (Dec 2024) for corn/soybeans/wheat/cattle/milk; EIA Weekly Retail On-Highway Diesel Prices (Dec 2024)

Farmland Watch

Who owns the dirt

Foreign-held share of agricultural land, by state. Brighter red = a bigger slice of the ground is owned from overseas.

Foreign-held farmland share by state AK: no data Alabama: 6.2% foreign-held · 2.10M acres Arkansas: 5.4% foreign-held · 1.75M acres AZ: no data CA: no data Colorado: 1.6% foreign-held · 1.80M acres CT: no data DE: no data FL: no data GA: no data HI: no data IA: no data ID: no data IL: no data IN: no data KS: no data KY: no data LA: no data MA: no data MD: no data Maine: 19.4% foreign-held · 3.20M acres MI: no data Minnesota: 1.9% foreign-held · 1.40M acres Missouri: 2.1% foreign-held · 1.35M acres MS: no data MT: no data North Carolina: 2.6% foreign-held · 1.10M acres ND: no data NE: no data NH: no data NJ: no data NM: no data NV: no data NY: no data OH: no data Oklahoma: 2.7% foreign-held · 1.95M acres OR: no data PA: no data RI: no data SC: no data SD: no data TN: no data Texas: 0.68% foreign-held · 4.70M acres UT: no data VA: no data VT: no data Washington: 2.9% foreign-held · 1.60M acres WI: no data WV: no data WY: no data
% foreign-held
low
high (19.4%)
no data
State Acres % Foreign ▾ YoY Acres
Texas 4.70M 0.68% +210,000
Maine 3.20M 19.4% +85,000
Alabama 2.10M 6.2% +95,000
Oklahoma 1.95M 2.7% +60,000
Colorado 1.80M 1.6% +42,000
Arkansas 1.75M 5.4% +110,000
Washington 1.60M 2.9% +38,000
Minnesota 1.40M 1.9% +22,000
Missouri 1.35M 2.1% +55,000
North Carolina 1.10M 2.6% +47,000

Source: USDA AFIDA (Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act) 2023 Annual Report, Table 1 — Foreign Holdings of U.S. Agricultural Land by State

Going Under
134

Chapter 12 farm bankruptcies filed in 2024

Every number is a family farm in court. Year-to-date as of September 30, 2024.

Source: United States Courts, Bankruptcy Statistics — Chapter 12 filings, calendar year 2024 YTD through Q3 (Sept 30, 2024)

Biggest Grabs

The land-grab beat

All grabs →
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Analysis

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Explainer

Who Really Owns American Farmland? The Paper Trail Nobody Wants You to Follow

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Analysis

Wall Street Discovered Dirt: How Private Equity Turned Farmland Into a Yield Play
Data & Sources

How we count

The War Room pulls from public federal datasets. Each feed is sourced and dated below; a stale flag appears on any panel whose figures are overdue for a refresh. No estimates, no models — just what the agencies publish.

Foreign-held farmland
USDA AFIDA (Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act) 2023 Annual Report, Table 1 — Foreign Holdings of U.S. Agricultural Land by State Updated Dec 1, 2024
Commodity prices
USDA NASS Agricultural Prices (Dec 2024) for corn/soybeans/wheat/cattle/milk; EIA Weekly Retail On-Highway Diesel Prices (Dec 2024) Updated Dec 1, 2024
Farm bankruptcies
United States Courts, Bankruptcy Statistics — Chapter 12 filings, calendar year 2024 YTD through Q3 (Sept 30, 2024) Updated Dec 1, 2024