Fedco Seeds

Fedco Seeds is a seed company based in Clinton, Maine and founded by C.R. Lawn in 1978. The company is a major supplier of vegetable seeds in the United States,[1][2][3] and specializes in varieties for northern growers and short growing seasons.[4] They sell seeds, trees, and bulbs.[5]

The Fedco catalog was founded during the Back-to-the-land movement, becoming a fixture in the movement's continuation.[1]

Fedco Seeds is a cooperative owned 60% by customers and 40% by employees.[6]

Fedco is a signatory of the "Safe Seed Pledge", which commits them to selling non GMO seed.[1]

Lawn retired in 2018.[7]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Fedco saw a massive increase in sales during the 2020 and 2021 season.[2]

References

  1. Jeffrey B. Roth. Seed Company Founded During Maine's 'Back-to-the-Land Movement' Lancaster Farming, 1 Dec 2022, retrieved 9 May 2025^
  2. Suppliers Field Growing Demand For Seeds From Pandemic Gardeners NPR.org^
  3. Margaret Roach. It May Feel Like Winter, but It's Time to Shop for Seeds The New York Times, December 9, 2020^
  4. Eliot Coleman. The Winter Harvest Handbook: Year-Round Vegetable Production Using Deep-Organic Techniques and Unheated Greenhouses 2009^
  5. Fedco introductory information - About Fedco Fedco Seeds^
  6. Catalog review: Fedco Seeds FineGardening, December 13, 2009^
  7. Mary Pols. 40-year-old Clinton seed co-op must move ahead without CR Lawn, its visionary center Press Herald, 2018-04-29, retrieved 2025-05-10^