In the U.S. and globally, seed industry concentration is at a historic high with two agrochemical companies controlling 71.6% of the market (MacDonald et al., 2023). This is particularly acute in maize (Zea mays) and driven by the dominant, productivist seed system (Buttel, 2005). Independent genotyping can only be conducted after patent and licensing restrictions have expired, a period of 20 years. These restrictions also impede a molecular based assessment of the standing crop by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) as recommended by experts. Data blanks about landscape vulnerability put farmers at risk of crop failure and the public at risk of food insecurity. Knowledge gaps about genetic diversity in U.S. commercial maize are designed through patents, contracts, non-disclosure agreements, and confidentiality agreements by patent holders who do not want their inbred lines genotyped by competitors. Findings from an empirical study based on semi-structured interviews with maize genetic diversity experts (n=44) indicate this restricts research and knowledge flow about genetic information to farmers and public networks (McCluskey & Tracy, 2021; McCluskey & Tracy, 2024).
A review of the emergence of PPB in the Global North (Colley et al., 2021) found agronomic improvements were only one lens motivating PPB, with many projects identifying goals of conservation of crop genetic diversity, farmers' seed sovereignty, and avoidance of certain breeding techniques. As a response to being underserved by the productivist model in the U.S., organic farmers and public and independent plant breeders developed the ‘Who Gets Kissed?’ project to develop an open-pollinated sweet maize variety bred under organic systems (Buttel, 2005; Shelton & Tracy, 2015). We present this case study through a systems lens to identify and address impacts of extreme concentration in the seed industry. Through alternative models we demonstrate the potential to navigate socio-economic and policy constraints resulting in expansion and diffusion of maize genetic diversity within countries of the Global North, inspired by traditional, community based, and participatory models from the Global South.
