Lawmakers demand answers from FFA over Chinese Communist Party ties

Federal lawmakers are demanding answers from National Future Farmers of America (FFA) over its partnership with a Chinese Communist Party-controlled agribusiness and its promotion of DEI initiatives, citing national security concerns and questions about its tax-exempt status.

The investigation is being led by the House Ways and Means Committee and the Congressional FFA Caucus, which say the organization’s relationship with Syngenta Group raises concerns about foreign influence and whether FFA is operating in accordance with its stated mission as a tax-exempt nonprofit.

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith and Congressional FFA Caucus Co-Chair Tracey Mann sent a letter to FFA National CEO Scott Stump demanding documents and responses related to the partnership, Syngenta’s role in internal policymaking and the organization’s compliance with federal tax law.

“Working with our country’s foreign adversaries and prioritizing woke policies over your mission raises serious concerns about whether the National FFA is complying with requirements to maintain tax-exempt status,” the lawmakers wrote.

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Rep. Jason Smith, R-Mo., is demanding answers from the national FFA over its partnership with a CCP-linked food company, citing national security tax status and foreign influence concerns. (Tom Williams)

In the letter, the committee highlighted FFA’s role in training future agricultural leaders, noting that the organization serves more than a million students through thousands of chapters across the country.

Lawmakers devoted a significant portion of the letter to detailing Syngenta Group’s ownership structure and its ties to the Chinese government, arguing that the relationship poses a red flag for a U.S.-based, tax-exempt youth organization tied to agriculture.

Syngenta has been 100% owned since 2017 by China National Chemical Corp., or ChemChina, a Chinese state-owned company that later merged with Sinochem Holdings.

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Lawmakers devoted a significant portion of the letter to describing Syngenta Group’s ties to the Chinese government. (Li He/Xinhua via Getty Images)

Both ChemChina and Sinochem were designated under the first Trump administration as Communist Chinese military companies, a classification used to identify companies linked to Beijing’s military-civil fusion strategy and restrict their access to U.S. government funding.

Lawmakers noted that while those designations were removed in 2021 under the Biden administration, Syngenta was later redesignated as a Chinese military company, highlighting ongoing concerns about its ties to the Chinese state.

The letter also highlights actions by U.S. states and federal agencies to limit Chinese ownership and influence in U.S. agriculture. This included efforts to force Syngenta subsidiaries to divest their farmland and initiatives to prevent the sale of U.S. farmland to Chinese entities for national security reasons.

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Lawmakers also expressed concern about the influence a Chinese state-owned company could exert over future agricultural leadership. (Ken Ishii – Piscine/Getty Images)

Against this backdrop, lawmakers said Syngenta’s access to FFA leaders, programs and students raises concerns about the influence a Chinese state-owned company could wield over future U.S. agricultural leaders.

“The CCP has a well-documented history of economic espionage to steal intellectual property related to biotechnology and agriculture, and the fact that the National FFA provided one of its state-owned companies with direct access to the future leaders of the U.S. agricultural industry is alarming,” the letter said.

Lawmakers have also criticized FFA’s embrace of DEI initiatives, arguing that the programs risk shifting the organization of agricultural education toward identity-based priorities that could divide students.

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They questioned whether Syngenta’s role in DEI-related efforts gave it undue influence over the FFA’s strategic direction.

“The goal of the national FFA should be to bring student members together as a community, not to force them into specific categories,” the lawmakers wrote.

Smith and Mann said the investigation is part of broader congressional oversight of tax-exempt organizations and their exposure to foreign influence, especially as agriculture and food security are increasingly viewed as a national security issue.

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House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith and Rep. Tracey Mann cited USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins’ remarks that “agricultural safety is national security.” (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)

Smith and Mann cited a statement from USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins that “agricultural safety is national security.”

Ultimately, the letter orders the national FFA to turn over the documents and provide detailed responses about its partnership with the Syngenta Group, including contracts and financial contributions, the role Syngenta employees play in management or advisory positions, and the company’s involvement in developing the FFA’s diversity and strategic programs.

In a statement provided to Fox News Digital, Smith said the committee was expanding its investigation to include FFA due to concerns about foreign influence and its impact on the organization’s mission.

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“The Ways and Means Committee is expanding its investigation into malign foreign influence in the U.S. tax-exempt sector to include FFA in light of deeply disturbing reports that the organization maintained ties to an entity controlled by the Chinese Communist Party – a relationship that appears to have influenced its decision-making,” Smith said. “FFA plays a vital role in educating the next generation of farmers, strengthening American agriculture, and safeguarding our nation’s food supply and national security. This important mission must not be compromised.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to National FFA for comment on the matter.