There have been growing concerns in the U.S. about China's influence on the economy, with acute focus on the farming industry. In August, at a roundtable in Dysart, Iowa, hosted by a bipartisan delegation form Congress, farmers accused the Chinese state of stealing samples of genetically enhanced seeds—in some cases, straight from the field—in order to reproduce them back home.
The delegation cited a 2012 case in which a Dysart farmer spotted a man in business attire digging up hybrid seeds, which were then sent back to China. Mo Hailong was later arrested by the FBI for stealing U.S. agriculture trade secrets, and convicted of various crimes related to the long-term conspiracy in 2016.