THE
STATE
OF
SEED
A seed is a miracle. Latent life, upon which so much other life depends. However, seeds also depend on us. They are dynamic, and require attention and devotion in their partnership with human beings. Seeds are cultural, in the sense that they tell the story of who we are – our migrations, our individual and collective heritage, and the myriad efforts of countless hands and eyes carefully selecting generation after generation of our sustenance.
The decades leading up to the present have seen a dramatic shift in seed production. The continual consolidation of seed companies through acquisitions and mergers has resulted in three multinational companies controlling over half of the world’s seed supply. Various forms of proprietary ownership are predominant, and the scope of ownership unprecedented. Public funding for traditional, open-source plant breeding at land grant universities – subsidized by taxpayer dollars - has declined by almost one third, while breeding for proprietary-based systems has skyrocketed, funded in large part by the companies who benefit directly from them.
The erosion of genetic diversity has been dramatic. Over 90% of the vegetable varieties available to previous generations has been lost. Gone forever. With such genetic erosion has come a startling decline in place-based seed. Seed adapted to its locale; that knows its soil, knows its neighbors (diseases and pests), and knows its climate.
To boot, most breeding is geared towards resource intensive, commercial agriculture; consequently, varieties are not accustomed to growing within sustainable, organic systems. Therefore, to compare low-input organic farming to chemical-dependent alternatives, at the seed level, is to compare apples with oranges. In lieu of an adequately funded public support system for organic breeding is a decentralized network that engage farmers directly in the process. Seed bred in situ, with farmers as collaborators rather than simply recipients, is the backbone of a resilient, robust agriculture. It democratizes the plant breeding process, allowing seed – like other basic necessities such as air and water – to remain in the public domain.
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FREED SEED FEDERATION
The Freed Seed Federation grew into an organization from humble beginnings in Bill's garden while working at Eva's and transpired over the first few years at Ivory Silo Farm, evolving now to include collaborators beyond ourselves and our farm. We founded this 501c3 to expand and enrich our seed efforts in order to invest more time and energy into this necessary seed work. Learn more at https://www.freedseedfederation.org/
Currently we save seed from nearly 50 varieties across more than a dozen crop families. We are generally selecting for pest and disease resistance, resilience to weather extremes, and of course flavor, plus specific desirable traits unique to each variety.
Some of our favorites...
"Jimmy Nardello" Pepper
Hands down the best producing sweet pepper for New England climes, Jimmy Nardello has all the rich, depth of flavor of a hot pepper without the heat. Though often listed as a frying pepper – and it is fantastic fried – it is also delicious fresh. Listed on Slow Food’s Ark of Taste, and brought to Connecticut from the village of Ruoti in the Basilicata region of southern Italy in 1887 by Jimmy Nardello’s mother.
“Macomber Turnip”
A Westport tradition since circa 1876, the Macomber Turnip is botanically a rutabaga, said to have crossed with a radish. Unparalleled in flavor, this amazing vegetable has been preserved by the people of Westport and the South Coast since its inception, a remarkable example of a common heritage preserved through tradition. As residents and farmers in Westport, we are honored to continue the legacy. It is a poster child for place-based seed, thriving in our soils and climate and often outcompeting the most aggressive weeds.