Because a better world begins with seed transparency
We harness the collective power to unleash seed potential at the local level
What is at stake?
Today, seed is selected to maximize profits; it is bred in specific locations, then multiplied around the world, and sold to consumers with the understanding that it will perform well over a wide range of environmental conditions. But like people, a seed and the potential it has within is both a measure of its genetic code and the environmental forces that play upon it. Seeds that are both selected and produced in a given environment over time perform better in that environment than a seed selected and produced in a different environment. Though modern centralized plant breeding processes have resulted in many advantageous varieties, significant genetic potential is lost when we ignore the power and imprint of Place. SeedLinked puts Place back into the equation.
Choosing seed should be simpler
How do I know where a seed was selected? Or, where the parent plants grew that produced the seed? How can I be sure it will perform well under my environmental conditions? SeedLinked takes these questions seriously and provides a framework for increased transparency in plant breeding and seed selection.
The time has come to break new ground in how we choose our seed
In the midst of an increasingly centralized seed market where uniformity and broad adaptation drive plant breeding innovation and little information is shared with those growing the seed, a fundamentally different model of agriculture is emerging. This new model is based on diversifying farms and building healthier & more resilient agro-ecosystems. SeedLinked aims to be at the heart of this change.
The future of seed
SeedLinked believes in a future founded on collaboration, and that more shared data and transparency builds a stronger market and more resilient agricultural ecosystem, benefiting people and the environment in the present, and for generations to come.
Collaborative
Moving science from centralized
research stations to your field
Accessible
Link regional seed producers/breeders to growers with the power of shared data
Open Source
Open source platform and participatory testing capacity to unleash regional adaptation in seed
Transparent
Know the origin of your seed; easily document how it performs; maintain ownership of your data
The Seed Collective Intelligence Platform: Disrupt, Empower, Grow
We apply a crowdsourcing approach to revolutionize variety testing, by providing valid alternatives to the highly centralized, capital-dependent model currently in place. The benefits of low capital requirements and highly granular data, coupled with a decentralized, flexible, and evolutive testing approach would ultimately contribute to more diversity in agricultural and food systems. Increased availability and use of diverse seeds would create more diversity in agricultural landscapes, contributing to “breeding ecosystems” that could evolve much quicker in face of climate change, boost local adaptation and performance, and bring resiliency and food sovereignty to local economies in an era of globalizing fragility. Farmers would be able to predict more accurately the outcomes of their actions, react quicker in the face of nature’s reoccurring challenges as patterns and changes will be captured, analyzed, and communicated. And, ultimately, the end-user (shopper, baker, chef, etc.), farmer, and plant breeder will be directly connected as never before, creating a more democratic seed economy.