LINCOLN- While foreign nations like China, Italy, and Canada have deep connections to modern Nebraska agriculture, their involvement rarely extends to actual foreign ownership of agricultural land, according to an analysis of data gathered by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. In fact, according to the analysis, most foreign ownership of ag land has been barred by law in Nebraska.

Despite this, nearly 795,000 acres of Nebraska farmland were registered as having "foreign interest" in 2021. "I think sometimes the perception of the public and sometimes the way it's reported by the press is people see that number and say, 'Oh my gosh, foreigners own 700,000 acres!'" said Rick Leonard, a researcher for the Nebraska Legislature's Agriculture Committee.

According to Leonard, very few of the interests reported are true ownership interests, with most actually being leases or easements, meaning the farmer still owns the land. Canada and Italy together make up around 93% of the total acres under foreign interest in Nebraska, with the vast majority of disclosed foreign projects relating to renewable energy, like turbines and solar panels.

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