Chen Tianqiao, a co-founder of Shanda Interactive Entertainment, made the purchase of Oregon land for $85 million, paying around $430 an acre, according to Land Report magazine, the New York Post reported Saturday.

“In 2015, Tianqiao Chen acquired nearly 200,000 acres of former Crown Pacific timberlands in Oregon from Fidelity National Financial Ventures for $85 million ($430 per acre),” the magazine said. “Chen did so via the investment vehicle Whitefish Cascade Forest Resources LLC. In December 2023, Oregon tax records revealed that the 198,000-acre block was currently owned by Shanda Asset Management LLC.” …

“Right now, we don’t know the full extent of the risk at hand,” Democrat Sen. Tammy Baldwin (WI) said. “Outdated reporting systems and a lack of auditing at both the state and federal level leave us with incomplete information and many questions.”

Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik (NY) told the Post on Saturday that the Biden administration has “dropped the ball” when it comes to foreign adversaries goggling up American farmland.

[Some states, such as Florida, have either passed bans on Chinese nationals buying land or are considering them, although those have yet to be tested in court. I’d consider any kind of large-scale consolidation of agricultural land to be a concern. Reportedly, several American billionaires have made similar purchases at scale, too. — Ed]