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Idaho seed industry representatives detail production, economic impact and risks
Summary
Roger Batt, executive director of the Idaho Eastern Oregon Seed Association, told the Senate Agriculture Committee the seed sector contributes substantial economic value to the state and faces threats including loss of farmland, pesticide-label changes and water uncertainty.
Roger Batt, executive director of the Idaho Eastern Oregon Seed Association, told the Senate Agriculture Committee that seed production is a specialized industry concentrated in parts of the state and is vital to food security.
"It all starts with the seed," Batt said, describing seed as "the cornerstone of agriculture" and saying the United States accounts for about 34.5% of global seed production. He told the committee that Idaho is one of six global seed-production regions and that production clusters in the Treasure Valley, Magic Valley and eastern and northern Idaho.
Batt provided crop-specific figures: Canyon County produces about 65% of the world’s sweet corn seed (he said that share was higher two decades ago), Idaho leads the U.S. in carrot seed with roughly…
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