GE Bluegrass Raises Concerns for Grass Seed Growers

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SALEM, Ore. – Scotts-Miracle-Gro, headquartered in Marysville, Ohio, is the largest supplier of grass seed in the United States. This past winter Scotts-MiracleGro CEO Jim Hagedorn announced that the company is testing herbicide-resistant Kentucky bluegrass with an eye to selling the seed to U.S. consumers, and perhaps as early as next season in a limited release.

The issue of Roundup-resistant grass seed being grown in the Pacific Northwest, the "grass seed capital" of the United States, has producers and turfgrass breeders there nervous. They fear it could significantly impact their operations, including their export of grass seed to foreign buyers who demand non-GMO product, reports the Capital Press newspaper, which reports extensively on agriculture in Oregon’s Willamette Valley.

Read about their concerns by clicking on "GE Grass Raises Concerns for Grass Seed Growers" in the Capital Press by reporter Mateusz Perkowski.