Secretary Hegseth Signed One Document With USDA That Has China Scrambling

Trump's been sounding the alarm about Chinese land grabs near American military bases for years.

Now his administration is finally doing something about it.

And Secretary Hegseth signed one document with USDA that has China scrambling.

Trump Administration Launches Unprecedented Farm Security Plan

Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins appeared on Fox Business's Morning with Maria to drop a bombshell that caught Washington by surprise.

Rollins announced Secretary Pete Hegseth was heading over to USDA headquarters to sign a memorandum of understanding that represents the most aggressive action ever taken against foreign control of American farmland.

"In just about an hour, Secretary Hegseth is coming over to USDA, we'll be hosting an event, doing a press conference, and signing a memorandum of understanding that an unprecedented effort to ensure that our departments are working together," Rollins said.

The timing wasn't coincidental.

China controls nearly 300,000 acres of American farmland, and a disturbing pattern has emerged – much of that land sits mysteriously close to major military installations.

Fort Bragg in North Carolina is surrounded by Chinese-owned farmland within a 30-mile radius, according to intelligence reports.

The largest military base in America by personnel, home to the elite 82nd Airborne Division and critical special operations units, is being watched by entities controlled by America's greatest adversary.

Before Trump took office, foreign adversaries had been quietly buying up strategic farmland across America for years while Washington did nothing.

This wasn't just about food security, though that's bad enough.

Chinese-controlled land near bases like Grand Forks Air Force Base in North Dakota, Laughlin Air Force Base in Texas, and Francis E. Warren National Nuclear Base in Wyoming creates surveillance opportunities that intelligence experts warn could be catastrophic in a conflict.

Why The Pentagon Finally Got Involved

Secretary Hegseth joining this fight sent an unmistakable message.

The Department of Defense now views Chinese farmland purchases as a direct military threat, not just an agricultural concern.

The New York Post identified 19 U.S. military bases with Chinese-owned farmland nearby in positions ideal for surveillance operations.

National security experts explained how easy modern technology makes exploitation of land access near sensitive facilities.

"The ability to own large tracts of land, especially close to sensitive U.S. military and government facilities, can pose an enormous problem given the nature of technology today," former Pentagon official David Feith told 60 Minutes.

Chinese law requires all corporations – including those operating abroad – to cooperate with Beijing's intelligence agencies.

That means Chinese companies buying American farmland aren't independent private enterprises.

They're extensions of the Chinese Communist Party with legal obligations to share data and assist in intelligence operations.

China owning farmland next to American nuclear missile silos creates the exact same threat.

USDA-Pentagon Partnership Changes Everything

The memorandum of understanding Rollins and Hegseth signed represents the first time USDA and the Department of Defense have formally coordinated on agricultural security as a national security priority.

Rollins now joins the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), giving the Agriculture Secretary direct input on foreign land purchases before they happen.

"I'm so proud of Secretary Hegseth. He has leaned all in on this, as has the president, and we're going to keep fighting for our American farmers and ranchers," Rollins stated.

The Trump Administration isn't stopping with new purchases.

Secretary Rollins suggested the President may issue executive orders to claw back land already controlled by Chinese agribusiness giants like Smithfield Foods and Syngenta.

Biden ordered one Chinese-backed cryptocurrency mining operation near Wyoming's nuclear missile base to shut down and sell in 2024.

But that was reactive, piecemeal action.

Trump's approach is systematic warfare against Chinese economic infiltration of American agriculture and defense infrastructure.

Alabama has 2.2 million acres of foreign-owned land – the fourth-highest in America.

North Carolina accounts for 13% of all Chinese-owned farmland in the United States, with 50,000 acres across 28 counties.

Most of that land clusters around Fort Bragg.

The Trump Administration launched a public web portal where Americans can report suspected violations of foreign land ownership disclosure requirements.

USDA canceled seven agreements with entities in foreign adversary countries and removed 70 foreign nationals – mostly Chinese post-doctoral researchers – from Agricultural Research Service positions.

States are fighting back too.

Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders led the nation in kicking China off her state's farmland, and 29 states now restrict or ban foreign agricultural land purchases entirely.

Trump's farm security plan combines transparency improvements, enhanced verification of foreign ownership data, collaboration with state officials, and aggressive use of presidential authority to reverse Chinese land acquisitions.

"We feed the world. We lead the world. And we'll never let foreign adversaries control our land, our labs, or our livelihoods," Rollins declared.

China spent decades playing the long game – infiltrating research, buying farmland near military bases, stealing technology, and positioning assets for intelligence gathering and potential sabotage.

Trump just changed the rules of engagement.

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Sources:

• Brooke Rollins interview, Morning with Maria, Fox Business, February 11, 2026.
• Mary K. Jacob, "Map shows Chinese-owned farmland next to 19 US military bases in 'alarming' threat to national security: experts," New York Post, June 20, 2024.
• "U.S. Intelligence Tracks Chinese Military-Linked Purchases of Land Near Strategic Bases," Modern Diplomacy, January 25, 2026.
• "Farm Security is National Security: The Trump Administration Takes Bold Action to Elevate American Agriculture in National Security," USDA Press Release, July 8, 2025.
• "USDA Advances Farm Security Action Plan to Protect U.S. Farmland and Federal Programs from Foreign Adversaries," USDA Press Release, December 30, 2025.