purplepride0 - 3/8/2013 13:44

Couple points:
1) supply in general is tight. If you are waiting till now to order lots of options have been whittled down/away

Supply is tight because seed companies want to sell the HIGH dollar GMO. I have been to several meeting this winter where the question of why there was not more selection available in nongmo and at one of the meeting that was put on by a seed company (I have never done business with them) and they out right said it was more profitable for them to sell GMO. This is not giving a choice this is pushing the GMO on to the farmer.

2) Non-GMO is an issue occasionally. If you want it I would say start developing a relationship with one of the regionals, if there is demand they will produce. You may have to committ early (real early) but can be done. Problem is that production plans for next year are in place or close to it for Spring 2014 already. Not manufacturing widgets, takes lead time to plant inbreds and get produced. I have lined up Conventional (no trait) products for customers but the problem for us is that there is not consistant demand.

I have been doing business with the same seed supplier for more than 20 years and they know I do not want GMO corn. I drug my feet for a year or two when RR beans first cam out, but have been planting them since, but am thinking of getting some nongmo beans this coming year. The rr beans have helped me to clean up my weed problem, but they have never yielded has high as I was getting with nonrr before I started raising rr beans. It appears to me that from the meeting I have been to that there is a lot more demand than the seed companies are providing.



3) economy basics. If there is demand supply will develop to meet it. number of units of demand will be a factor (20 vs 2000)

I think that there is a lot more demand than the seed companies are willing to admit.

4) Not the same in all areas but "here" you would have to work real hard to convince me to plant non-RW corn. Not uncommon to see 20-30 bu responce. However pockets 60 miles in any direction there is not as much need. So...your situation/view point can be different from others.

I will not under any circumstance grow both beans and corn that are RR. It give me a chance to use different chemicals to help avoid resistance. I have always on my RR beans put down a residual and only used RU as a post emergence.

Not trying to be a smart allec, just giving you 2 cents from someone who has worked on that end before too.