These are the seeds of a revolution.

July 12, 2019 9:33 AM

Save Our Food. Free the Seed. Just 50 years ago, some 1,000 small and family-owned seed companies were producing and distributing seeds in the United States; by 2009, there were fewer than 100. Thanks to a series of mergers and acquisitions over the last few years, four multinational agrochemical firms — Corteva, ChemChina, Bayer and BASF — now control over 60 percent of global seed sales. (slnyt)
posted by poffin boffin (7 comments total)

Independent seed companies include Baker Creak heirloom seeds, Botanical interests, and Kitazawa seed company which specializes in Asian vegetables and herbs.
posted by Homo neanderthalensis at 9:40 AM on July 12, 2019 [2 favorites]

Splendid Table episode 655 had an intersting segment on seeds. Specifically they focused on Row 7 Seed company, which sells seeds that are specifically bred for flavor, whereas most commercial seeds are bred for factors like yield and climate versatility. My limited experience with homegrown vegetables is that they can be pretty flavorless, so I would love to try planting these when I have a garden someday.
posted by tuffet at 11:57 AM on July 12, 2019 [1 favorite]

Fedco (Maine) is a worker-consumer coop. Here is their seed ethics statement including a boycott of Monsanto/Bayer. Johnny's (also Maine) is employee owned. They have a seed safety statement. High Mowing (Vermont) is another source for organic seeds many of which are produced in their area. These are the companies I am familiar with as it is usually best to source seeds bred for your part of the country.
posted by Botanizer at 12:18 PM on July 12, 2019 [1 favorite]

Monopoly!!
It's not just a fun board game.
posted by BlueHorse at 2:41 PM on July 12, 2019

For the home gardener, there's a local woman I follow who works for a few specialty nurseries in town and she does seed sales on Etsy. Really interesting plants. She has a good eye for unique specimens and I don't know how it all works but the plants look amazing - Milton's Garden Menagerie.
posted by amanda at 5:36 PM on July 12, 2019 [2 favorites]

Janisse Ray wrote about this in The Seed Underground. She's a wonderful writer.
posted by mareli at 5:56 PM on July 12, 2019 [2 favorites]

A derail, I know, but I have no clue what's growing in my garden right now. They told me using random seeds is more secure...
posted by DreamerFi at 3:53 AM on July 13, 2019