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I’m fairly sure that farmers often buy seeds rather than harvesting them. There are lots of reasons for this but essentially growing seeds and growing produce i
by padjo 1y ago
I’m fairly sure that farmers often buy seeds rather than harvesting them. There are lots of reasons for this but essentially growing seeds and growing produce is just quite different. I don’t think it’s the dramatic shift you’re making it out to be.
- kevin_thibedeau 1y agoIt depends on the crop. With cereals, the seed is the product, and you could divert a part of production to next year's planting. With other crops, harvest may happen before seeds mature and may require special processing to extract them for the seed producers.
- bluGill 1y agoIf you are planting hybrid seeds you would never save seeds because their children don't yield well. Hybrid yields so much better that it isn't worth planting anything else if you have the option.
- Suppafly 1y ago>With cereals, the seed is the product, and you could divert a part of production to next year's planting. Theoretically, but generally that doesn't happen because you want hybrid seeds that need to be grown every year to get the traits you want, you don't want to plant the seeds you harvested from the hybrid plants.
- dpe82 1y agoMy grandfather in the US Midwest in the 1950s farmed specifically to harvest seeds for planting which he then sold to his regional neighbors via distributors. I don't know the specifics, but I understand that even back then the farming practices were sufficiently different that the specialization was warranted.