Not long ago in an article I let my opinion be known about our current process of price discovery pertaining to our cash grain markets. At that time I spoke primarily about price setting in regard to cash wheat prices in our country.
I still believe that for the most part we really aren’t relying on the United States commodity markets to set the value of wheat. Instead the price is being set by Russia, the Black Sea and Putin. I am convinced that it goes further than wheat and is starting to include price manipulation in corn and sunflowers.
Although this is a big problem we must be very concerned about how our prices are being manipulated by Russia, there is a bigger problem on the horizon—it is not Russia but instead it is China.
China should be front and center when it comes to what our country should be ultimately concerned about. Farmers can be on the front line when it comes to identifying what China is up to in its quest to control world food production. China knows that he who controls food controls the population. From time to time powers to be have spoken to us about things China is up to not only in our country but around the world but the voices are not unified about what needs to be done.
As some of you might be aware China has been buying farmland in our country even though there are some laws stating that they are not allowed to do so. Recently this hit home with our family when farm ground that we had rented for over 70 years was sold to an investment company from California by the name of R.P. Chua Consulting LLC. Although I have tried several times to communicate with the company’s representatives they have not been very forthcoming, therefore, I know nothing about the real purchasers.
When large entities or countries, such as China, purchase farmland they not only inflate land prices, they displace farmers, make it harder for young farmers to get started in farming and even affect research by asking for refunding of commodity check-off funds.
The purpose of this letter is to make people aware that specifically other farmers that if they have any information about farms being purchased by outside investors I would like to serve as a receptacle for that information. I also invite any input or suggestions about this problem we are facing. You can contact me, Ron Suppes, via email at [email protected].
Ron Suppes is a farmer from Dighton, Kansas.
