TEIKEI Network › Breeders, Farms, and Producers › Seeds and Breeding · 4 min read
Every annual crop begins with a seed. Which variety grows in the field influences taste, yield, resilience, and whether a farm can sow its own harvest again the following year.
This page describes how varieties are developed, preserved, and propagated, and who carries out this work.
All three tasks require space, time, knowledge, and patience. They take place on farms, in breeding initiatives, in seed companies, and in gardens.
With open-pollinated varieties, seeds produce plants that correspond to the variety type. They are also called true-to-type or open-pollinating. Part of the harvest can be saved and sown again the following year (cultural seed).
With hybrid varieties, the offspring are inconsistent and less productive. The seed is therefore purchased new each year (Wirz, Kunz, Hurter 2017).
Open-pollinated varieties are considered the foundation of diversity in the field. They can adapt to a location over the years and allow farms to decide for themselves whether to buy or produce seed.
Seed is three things at once: an economic good that is sold, a legal good that can be protected as a variety, and a cultural asset containing the knowledge of many generations (Wirz, Kunz, Hurter 2017).
Breeding Initiatives. The non-profit association Kultursaat preserves proven open-pollinated vegetable varieties, breeds new open-pollinating varieties, and conducts breeding research on organically and biodynamically managed farms.
Preservation Networks. At ProSpecieRara, seeds from over 1,700 rare vegetable, field, and ornamental plant varieties are stored in a seed library. Over 500 volunteer variety stewards grow the varieties in their own gardens and send seeds back.
Seed Companies. Specialist companies propagate seeds in larger quantities and handle preservation breeding for demanding crops. For ProSpecieRara, partners like Sativa Rheinau maintain around 15 varieties annually.
Farms. Many farms produce part of their own seed. An example from the network is Piluweri. How this looks in cultivation is described on the page Annual Cultivation Systems.
In the TEIKEI Network, breeders can be supported long-term by the entire network: through a minimal basic cost contribution that members pay monthly and that goes to the breeders. It is a separate contribution, as minimal as possible, and helps stabilize seeds and breeding.
Sales of seeds and license fees are not sufficient for organic breeding (Wirz, Kunz, Hurter 2017). Additional approaches include:
This is justified by the fact that organic breeding contributes to further common goods, such as diversity in the field.
European Union. Seed legislation is being reorganized. Negotiations between Parliament, Council, and Commission were concluded on June 15, 2026, and the Parliament's Agriculture Committee confirmed the result on July 15, 2026. The new rules are expected to apply four years after entry into force, likely from autumn 2030. According to Arche Noah, access for diverse varieties will be easier, while the exchange of seeds among farmers remains limited (as of July 2026).
Switzerland. In Swiss organic farming, organic seeds are mandatory, recommended, or preferred depending on the crop. Exceptions for cultivating rare varieties to preserve diversity are possible upon application (bioaktuell.ch, as of 2020).
↑ One level up: Seeds and Breeding
By Felix Schröder, with support from AI (Claude)
Created on October 10, 2026 · Last updated on October 11, 2026
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