Public records cited by AgWeek show that the Gates-linked Red River Trust bought the farmland from the owners of Campbell Farms, a potato farming group that is headquartered in Grafton, North Dakota, which is about 50 miles from the Canadian border.

North Dakota Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring told KFYR that public reaction to the purchase has been largely negative.

"I've gotten a big earful on this from clear across the state, it's not even from that neighborhood," said Goehring.

"Those people are upset, but there are others that are just livid about this."