Foreign investors held 22.2 million acres of U.S. forest land as of December 31 2024, according to the report by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency. Forest land represented 47% of all foreign-held U.S. agricultural land, making it the largest single category of foreign ownership.

Between 2014 and 2024, foreign-owned forest acreage expanded 60%, rising from 13.9 million to 22.2 million acres. The increase reflects sustained investment in U.S. timber resources and in long-term renewable-energy leases on forest properties.

Maine contained the largest share of foreign-owned forest land with about 3.5 million acres. Other states with major foreign forest holdings included Michigan (1.7 million acres), Louisiana (1.5 million acres), Washington (1.1 million acres), and Oregon (1.1 million acres). Texas also reported extensive foreign ownership of agricultural land, but only part of its 2.2 million-acre total relates to forest property.

Canadian investors held the largest portion of U.S. forest acreage. Together with investors from the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, and the United Kingdom, they accounted for more than 60 % of all foreign-held agricultural and non-agricultural land in the country.
Most foreign-held forest tracts remain in active timber production or are managed for sustainable harvesting and reforestation. Some areas are also subject to long-term renewable-energy leases, typically 10 years or longer, that allow continued forestry operations alongside energy development.

Source: fsa.usda.gov