Safe Seed Pledge: Our commitment to organic, non-GMO seed. (2024)

FAQs

What is the safe seed pledge? ›

The Safe Seed Pledge

We must protect this foundation as a safe and genetically stable source for future generations. For the benefit of all farmers, gardeners and consumers who want an alternative, we pledge that we do not knowingly buy or sell genetically engineered seeds or plants.

Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Co. sells only Open-Pollinated, Pure, Natural, and Non- GMO seeds. This has been and will continue to be our guiding principle.

If you have any concerns about the seeds you're buying for the next gardening season, check to see if the company has taken the Safe Seed Pledge. Seed companies, like Lake Valley, take the pledge as a way to assure gardeners they aren't buying GMO seed.

The CRG Safe Seed Pledge is an expression of the scientific belief that gene manipulation of food supplies is essentially immoral. CRG stands for the “Council for Responsible Genetics.”

Getting Free Seeds From the Government

The U.S. National Plant Germplasm System is a website managed by the USDA. It allows users to search for and order seeds. Type in 'kale,' for example, and you'll see a slew of varieties.

A seed is a code for a randomly generated world, when you make a new world you have the option to type in a seed code.

Companies do not force farmers to buy GMO seeds.

Farmers choose what seeds to grow based on what is best for their farms, market demand and local growing environments. In fact, there are a wide variety of seed options available to farmers, including organic, hybrid, conventional and genetically modified seeds.

If you are particularly concerned, remember that there are only nine commercially available GM-crops from seed – corn, soybeans, cotton, alfalfa, sugar beets, canola, papaya, squash and potato. So don't get suckered in to paying extra for GM-free wheat seed or cucumber seeds – they are all non-GM.

Which is Better, Non-GMO or Organic? Organic means free of pesticides and GMOs, while non-GMO means the food wasn't made with genetically-modified organisms. There is no single answer to which is better – either one may be just as good if you're looking to maintain overall health and reduce your intake of contaminants.

Gardening organically with non-GMO seeds is always a better choice. Heirloom seeds, even without an organic label, are mostly chemical-free. Seeds are the starting point of any garden - their DNA determines the size and the quality of the produce that you will be receiving.

Are all fruits without seeds GMO? ›

No current seedless plants are genetically modified organisms (GMOs). As with many plant systems, several steps must work correctly in the “pathway” for production of the final product (seeds in this case). Compromise in any one step leads to failure.

All heirloom seeds are non-GMO (which stands for genetically modified organisms, or plants that have had their DNA changed artificially, often with genes from unrelated species it could not naturally cross with).

Untreated and Non-GMO Seeds

The Safe Seed Pledge says the following: Agriculture and seeds provide the basis upon which our lives depend. We must protect this foundation as a safe and genetically stable source for future generations.

Certified seed is the progeny of foundation seed and its production is supervised and approved by certification agency. The seed of this class is normally produced by the State and National Seeds Corporation and Private Seed companies on the farms of progressive growers.

The seeds are sealed in specially-designed four-ply foil packages that are placed in sealed boxes and stored on shelves inside the Seed Vault. The low temperature and moisture level ensures low metabolic activity, keeping the seeds viable for decades, centuries, or in some cases thousands of years.

Under Article 28 of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (the TRIPS Agreement), "planting, harvesting, saving, re-planting, and exchanging seeds of patented plants, or of plants containing patented cells and genes, constitutes use" and can in some cases ...

The Good Seed Initiative (GSI) aimed to enhance access to quality African indigenous vegetable (AIV) seed in Tanzania, through the promotion of farmer seed production, using two models—contract farming and Quality Declared Seed (QDS).

The use of Certified seed helps protect the buyer. It provides a guarantee to the user stating that the seed meets a specific standard level of high genetic purity, germplasm identity, high germinating ability, and minimum amounts of other crop seed, weed seed, and inert matter.

Free Seed Project gardens will yield healthy greens like kale, arugula, and spinach, nourishing veggies like carrots and beets, and tasty herbs like mint, basil and oregano. We'll send you about 10-20 of each seed, which gives you enough seed for 200 – 500 plants.