The History of PanAmerican Seed’s Oldest vs. Newest Products
Jason Jandrew Chief Product Development Officer
When PanAmerican Seed was first founded by Claude Hope, Charlie Weddle and Bob Holley, their first commercial products were double petunias, begonias and snapdragons… all of which we still breed today!
After Ball acquired PanAmerican Seed Co. in 1962, perhaps the most significant product introduced was Super Elfin Impatiens. Read about the history of Super Elfin here. Today, we still breed impatiens and the Beacon series from PanAmerican Seed is the industry standard for quality and (most importantly) disease resistance to Impatiens downy mildew.
In general, we have come a long way in breeding in the last 75 years. We have continued to excel in bedding plants and have diversified into perennials, cut flowers, potted plants and fresh market vegetables. There have been a lot of breeding advancements for both growers and consumers.
Our products have continually been bred for increased success by both groups. Disease resistance, new colors and habits, interspecific combinations, less daylength sensitivity, improved garden performance, hardiness, flavor, you name it. If there is a need from growers and consumers, likely we are working on it.
Today, PanAmerican Seed products are sold in more than 90 countries around the world. That’s a lot of customers and a lot of opportunities to continue our company’s rich history of innovation, quality and reliability.
