The whole team at Seed World U.S. wishes you and yours the happiest of holidays. To celebrate the season, we’re bringing you the 12 Days of Christmas, Seed World style: 12 days of some of the most important stories of the year, both from Seed World U.S. and our sister publications: Seed World Europe, Seed World Canada, and Seed World LatAm. When you need a break from family and feasting, escape to some great reading right here.
On the 1st Day of Christmas, Seed World brings to you:
(A Recap of) the Big Reveal
Editor’s note: Merry Christmas to you! On this day, when friends and family are unwrapping gifts around the country, we thought we’d recap our big ‘unwrapping’ of the year: our Seed World reveal.
Allow Me, With Great Pride and Appreciation, To Introduce the Changes We’re Making At Seed World
We’ve been working towards some changes for many months at Seed World Group. We’re delighted to say that those changes are finally underway! I’d like to take you on a brief tour of what’s ahead and why we’re moving forward in this new direction (spoiler alert: the changes are all about serving you better).
Many of our readers know us best via one of our publications. In the U.S., we’ve been Seed World since 1915. In Canada, we’ve published Germination magazine for more than 25 years. In Europe, we’re proud to have just recently celebrated European Seed’s tenth anniversary. In Latin America, we unveiled a brand-new publication called Seed World LATAM earlier this year.
Each of these publications has its own history, serves its unique region and industry, and meets the needs of its specific audience and partners. However, just as each region is part of a wider global seed industry, each of our publications is part of a wider, global Seed World.
Because our Seed World brand is expanding globally, our changes start with a shift in naming. We’re bringing all the publications ‘home’ under the same banner. European Seed is now Seed World Europe;Germination is now Seed World Canada. This magazine has less of a change: it’s now Seed World U.S.
Our evolution is about so much more than name changes. We’re evolving to make the Seed World brand omnipresent in each of the continents in which we do business. Here’s why that matters to the larger seed industry:
We’re proud to have a trusted and very global reputation within the seed industry, and a name that is synonymous with seed information, seed leadership and seed people. Pulling all our publications and our overall reach under the Seed World banner expands dramatically the Seed World name and our ability to deliver what today’s seed industry – whether at a regional, national or global level – needs.
This change confirms that Seed World is indeed the seed industry’s brand of choice: the source of information that people are going to look to no matter where they are on this glorious planet. Whether you’re American or French or Canadian or Swiss or Brazilian, you can look to Seed World knowing it is the single source of the trusted, timely, relevant information necessary to make critical business decisions.
Our evolution is also in step with the seed industry’s increasingly global nature. Anyone who’s been in the seed business for any time at all will very clearly understand that seed is a global business. It really doesn’t matter what crop type or what part of the seed value chain we’re talking about: that crossing of borders, that understanding of how business is done in different areas is critical to everyone’s success. What happens in any one region shapes, influences and informs every other region. By uniting our publications under the greater Seed World brand, we can more easily reach across the divides between regions to pull out the business-critical learnings our readers depend on.
Yet, make no mistake: we still need to be very clear on what national and regional rules apply to any particular region. That comes from understanding, first and foremost, at a local level. Our vision has always been and continues to be regionalized information: Europeans talking and writing about Europe, Canadians talking and writing about Canada, Latin Americans talking and writing about LATAM. We are absolutely committed to — in fact, our entire operating model is designed around — a boots on the ground approach. We know that it takes informed and articulate local and regional voices to tell relevant and timely local and regional stories.
What moving to a global platform allows us to add to that is greater ability to cross reference to the world, bringing in global perspective where it adds value to enhance understanding. Having a crossover of learnings from around the globe allows companies, regions and the larger industry to grow faster and grow better.
What can you expect to see for changes over the coming months? As of December, we’ll be rolling out an all-new global website. The website will feature all the local, national, region-specific content you’re used to, all conveniently findable under a region-specific tab. In addition, the website will feature each of our other regions’ content under their own regional tabs, making Seed World the one stop source for all seed information. Even better, the new website will provide more in-depth multi-regional content too. We can’t wait to show you!
I’ve led Seed World for nearly 20 years and am feeling a whole range of emotions as we embark on these big changes. Excitement, certainly. A bittersweet pang to be stepping away from the European Seed and Germination brands that have served the industry so well, though their legacy will continue in their new form. Pride in seeing our brand grow even more fully into serving as the globally recognized source for seed information and the hub of an ever larger and more inter-connected seed industry network.
My very biggest feeling as we’ve worked through this strategic process and now as we embark on these changes, however, is gratitude. I feel incredibly lucky to be part of a powerful team that continues to drive us forward through content, innovation and creativity, all with an eye on best meeting the complex, diverse and changing needs of the seed industry. This team, from our editorial experts to our business development managers, is second-to-none across the industry and beyond. It is their expertise, knowledge and commitment that sets us apart. I also feel incredibly lucky to have the partners and colleagues that I do across this great industry. At Seed World Group, we are honoured to play a supporting role in the incredibly passionate, forward-thinking, and important seed industry.
Our Main Focus is YOU!
By: Aimee Nielson, editor, Seed World U.S.
At our core, we’ve always had one main focus — sharing the incredible stories that shape the seed industry. We believe that by doing this effectively, we’re not just sharing information; we’re building connections that drive relationships and power businesses. It’s a way for us to directly influence the success of individual seed companies and, collectively, the entire seed industry.
With heartfelt gratitude, thank you for entrusting us with your stories, relying on us for information, and partnering with us throughout this industry. We genuinely feel the responsibility that comes with this trust, and we’re dedicated to providing you with everything you need today, tomorrow, and as we continue to grow together within the seed industry’s exciting future.
Speaking of growth, ours is the biggest global market for seed. Not only that, but it’s also the largest seed exporter on the planet. According to ASTA, in 2020, U.S. seed exports reached $1.62 billion.
We’re proud to be a part of this thriving industry, and we can’t wait to see where our collective journey takes us.
Check out the World of Seed World here.
Watch the Big Reveal video here.
