Haha… maybe this is just a strategy to get the farm on the records saying “no we don’t intend to sell, no we never said to anyone we intended to sell, we explicitly told the real estate developer we would not sell” and then turn around and sue the developer instead.

Why you could not just ask them for an official statement to that extend is a mystery to me. I’d imagine you want a good relationship with your neighbor, especially a farmer that could decide if he starts his morning routine next to your house or on the other end of his farmland. Or if he waits till tomorrow or manures his land on your national holiday where you planned to have a BBQ.