Where Our Seed Comes From
Sourcing Seeds
We are a seed distributor (aka seed dealer), so we work directly with seed breeding companies (vendors) to source our seed. We work with vendors from all over the United States as well as internationally. Certain seed crops grow best in different parts of the world and our seed breeding partners work hard to find the most productive locations for their seed crops. The range in size and scale of these companies allows us to provide a wide selection of unique crops for our customers.
Trialing New Varieties
Trialing is an essential part of the variety selection process. We work directly with the breeders and product development teams of these companies to source new and exciting varieties based on our customer’s needs. For example, we are always looking for varieties with improved disease resistance for different growing regions, adaptability, unique qualities of type, and outstanding flavor. We conduct our own trials in Washington State and on partner farms across the US and Canada and attend vendor trials in key regions. We use crop-specific evaluations to determine what varieties to add to our lineup.
From trialing to the Catalog
Once we select a variety that we want to add to our catalog and website, we work with the vendor breeder company on availability and purchasing. For new varieties, there is a 3-5 year period before an experimental becomes commercially available. Many times, the first few years of production are limited due to growing restrictions and this lead time is used to build sales and popularity through marketing before full production occurs. Vendor supply and sell-outs are out of our control. These can be due to crop failures, poor seed quality, and/or high demand. As with growing anything, there are occasionally issues with seed production. If this occurs, a vendor may make the decision to discontinue the production of that particular variety.
We do our best to forecast, contract, and book inventory needs well in advance, but there are many aspects of this process that cannot be controlled. Nevertheless, we work tirelessly to source high-quality, unique seed varieties for your success!
