Who owns and controls UK seed companies?

[maytreefrannie]

Very good reasons, I think, for saving our own seeds when we can.

Glad this thread was opened again - I hadn't read it before and it gave me a lot of info.

[Headfry]

Thanks Zazen999.
Our site has just joined NSALG and I have put in my first 'suck it and see' order with Kings- hence the question!
Spring is on its way .......yay! in fact

[smallblueplanet]

...Spring is on its way .......yay! in fact

Yay! Indeed! Have you been buzzy?

[Headfry]

SBP I am starting to feel the need - the need to sow a seed!!!! or lots of seeds for that matter.

[Alison]

Thanks Zazen999.
Our site has just joined NSALG and I have put in my first 'suck it and see' order with Kings- hence the question!

Kings seeds are good, not bad value and a good selection of open pollinated ones. Have used them for my main basic order for a few years with top up of more unusual things from Real Seeds and supplemented by an ever increasing amount of self saved ones. Stopped buying from the likes of T&M some years ago and much prefer the companies I now use.

[chris]

I use King Seeds too, the allotment association that I'm a member of (via the waiting list) uses them and gets a discount of the orders (which, to be honest is the only reason I use them). I do like their catalouge though, and their support is very helpful. I only use the likes of T&M (I *HATE* their new site) whenever I have a voucher to use.

I tend to use smaller places (like real seeds, or ready to grow) etc as their support is out of this world. I had something like 2/10 seeds germinate from ready to grow a while back - emailed them and they sowed a test batch, emailed me on germination and sent me replacements - no quibbles. T&M on the other hand, was a whole new story (I had some "furry" (i.e looked like the onset of mould) tomato seeds, 0 germination)... that's still not been sorted so I've just given up.

[smallblueplanet]

SBP I am starting to feel the need - the need to sow a seed!!!! or lots of seeds for that matter.

Same here, I think I may have to sow some chillies & aubergines at the weekend - I've dusted off the heated propagator and desk lamp!

[smallblueplanet]

...I only use the likes of T&M (I *HATE* their new site) whenever I have a voucher to use...

Lol! Snap, isn't it utter pants. Can't imagine how much they must have paid for it and its utter tripe. You think they'd suss it and just go back to the old one which was very easy to use and functioned!

[TonyF]

After we moved here I continued to use Kings Seeds because they do the bio varieties too and they also have the specialist herb side (name completely escapes me now) which I used for years in the UK. I think they're still a family run business.

I've weaned myself off of those now. Somebody I knew from a living in France forum sent me literally hundreds of seed packets of all sorts of varieties over a couple/three years and I've been using them up where I can - mainly from the small, specialist suppliers, there were even some HDRA/HSL packets in there.

Now I use self saved seeds or but wholly organic/bio seeds from the French heritage suppliers. Kokopelli seeds have the year of harvesting and the membership number of the supplier on the packets so if there's a duff batch, you can deal with it immediately.

On the two occassions I've won T&M vouchers here, I've mentally refused to buy their seeds (too many F1 and F2 varieties) and have opted for two rather tasteful Haw's watering cans instead

[squodgy]

Suttons

I was recently told that all UK seeds are now controlled by two concerns… is that true? It’s certainly a complex picture…

Dobies is now “owned by” Tesco – see:
Tesco buys Dobbies for £155.6m

and Dobies is the parent company of Suttons - e.g. if you look at the potato pages of their respective websites they are identical in product, prices, wording and even code numbers….: see:
http://www.dobies.co.uk/pl_Potatoes_.htm
http://www.suttons.co.uk/pl_Potatoes_.htm

Marshalls (one of my favourites until recently and which I assumed to be relatively local to me) seemed to suddenly go through “re-organisation” (= a measure of disorganisation) and for a short while “Unwins” appeared in their postal address but subsequently disappeared. I then learned that the Unwins take-over had happened some time before and that Westland of Northern Ireland had taken over both Unwins and Marshalls…
http://www.gardenhealth.com/page/company_information
I’ve no idea who owns or controls Westland…. (There’s also a U.S. based Westland Seed company but I don’t know if they’re related.) Globalisation…

Then there’s Mr Fothergills, where does Mr F fit in…?

Then there’s a complex layer of apparently independent seed suppliers - Real Seed Co, Chilterns Seed, Fruit and Veg Company, a growing number of organic concerns esp HDRA/Organics, CHASE etc, all producing seeds in their own packaging (but presumably under licence?)

And then to round it all off, tee-hee, there’s E.U. legislation…

Well I’m well confused…. Can anyone make any sense of this? Who’s Big Brother?

bb

Suttons, originally from the South of England, is now owned by French giant VILMORIN. But their site is naturally in French so I find it difficult to establish who or what has Financial Control.
Thompson & Morgan still seem to be private, although they have also expanded into US which may raise heads.
Commercially, MONSANTO, DUPONT & SYNGENTA control nearly half of the world's seed distribution, see "GMWATCH.org".
With such relentless Globalisation, and totally un-monitored Genetic Modification, it seems the ordinary retail customer may be the next target for GMO seeds.....with the terminator gene?????

[Thelma Sanders]

Here we go again

[scarey55]

Noted ladies

[Peas'n'Kews]

If its any reassurance at all, I recently spent a good half hour or so on the Dobies site trying to find out if they use GM seeds, and I did find a statement that they are GM free -

History of Dobies of Devon - Dobies of Devon

[lottie dolly]

IF ONLY somone would come up with some pest free seeds = plants,especially rodent and slug free

[quark1]

I would hopefully say that so long as msrs MONSANTO, and their ilk, have nothing to do with your seed provision you're probably OK. One of the most aggressive companies for promotion of gm seeds and weedkillers, pesticides etc which are most likely ott - the opinion of myself and not the website - please remove comment of thought too political - even though TRUE!