East-West Seed

East-West Seed is a privately owned vegetable seed company and one of the world's leading breeders of seeds for tropical smallholder farmers. Founded in 1982 by Dutch seedsman Simon N. Groot — the 2019 World Food Prize Laureate — the company has played a key role in developing and improving tropical vegetable varieties adapted to tropical markets and growing conditions.

The company traces its origins to Groot's travels as marketing director of the family seed business Sluis & Groot (now Syngenta), during which he observed that low-quality seeds caused poor yields among smallholder farmers, perpetuating poverty and malnutrition. He established the company in the Philippines in partnership with Filipino seed trader Benito Domingo. Initially named Hortigenetics Philippines, Inc., it was renamed East-West Seed to symbolize the partnership between the East (Asia) and the West (Europe).

Its mission is to provide innovative products and services that improve the livelihood of vegetable farmers, and it also trains farmers to maximize yield and income through better knowledge of vegetable production. What began on a five-hectare farm outside Lipa City, Batangas, has grown into a global leader serving millions of farmers across 80 tropical countries.

Groot received the 2019 World Food Prize in recognition of the company's impact on world nutrition, and East-West Seed has been recognized by the Global Access to Seed Index for improving the productivity of smallholder farmers in under-developed markets. Innovation in seed breeding and farmer training is central to the company's purpose and reach.