Celebrating and sustaining tomorrow's food cultures today.

Welcome! Bienvenue! Ahlyaan! Willkommen!, Bienvenido!

Michel and Jude Fanton welcome you wherever you are. Use the resources we offer at no cost to you and without sponsored links.  If you have a web presence - a blogspot, Myspace, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube - the best way to support our seed work is by making a link from your site (s) to ours.

This site gives you the opportunity to make comments after watching one of our video clips or short articles (the beauty of Web 3 is it allows you to make your presence felt by responding).

Renew or Support Seed Savers, Acquire the Books and DVD of Documentary that we produced

Our premiere publication: The Seed Savers' Handbook

30 000 copies sold so far. This is a classic and enduring reference for those ready to become a seed saver or willing to improve the quality of their seeds. Sample the book contents, order a print version online. It will be sent airmail. The book is translated into French, Basque, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, Bahasa Indonesian.

SeedBlog

Ready for an adventure? The SeedBlog is sort of like a written seed-cam. Unedited, unpredictable, fresh as the morning pea-blossom. Come along on our journeys to the back blocks and get your hackles up over the continued degradation of the world's food vigour.

About us

Yes, the big story behind the story. A bit of our journey, highlights from a long walk with the media, and the mysterious mechanics of how our operation keeps rolling along without government funding,  just friends helping where they can.

Haiku of Climate Change Readiness

Posted Sat, 07/11/2009 - 22:35 by Jude Fanton

 Few rivers remain wild in Japan and the coasts are almost totally lined with concrete blocks. At least they are ready for climate change sea rise and more storms.

Flotsam collects behind these piles of concrete. Haiku of rope, net and sandal.

Grandma Kiku-yo, name meaning “Chrysanthemum“

Posted Sat, 07/11/2009 - 22:19 by Jude Fanton

This original seed saver totally inspired us. She collects every kind of seed imaginable, including the most delicate pulses such as mung and aduki beans and sesame seeds. Her garden is so complex and varied, including of course chrysanthemums.

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Kukiyo-san in her garden

Kimie, Natural Seed Saver Par Excellence

Posted Sat, 07/11/2009 - 21:52 by Jude Fanton

Commercial farmer, Kimie showed us her seed collection that she stores in a fridge in her garden shed.

Handbook in Japanese

Posted Sat, 07/11/2009 - 21:48 by Jude Fanton

A meeting with our Japanese publishers in Tokyo revealed that the Japanese version our Seed Savers’ Handbook is still in demand, despite several other publications on seed saving since its release in 2002.

Photo taken in Grandma's Garden project run by Chiba Prefectural Museum where grandmas save seeds of local varieties.

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Natural Seed Network

Posted Sat, 07/11/2009 - 21:45 by Jude Fanton

 We visited the Natural Seed Network here in Chiba Prefecture, not far from Narita Airport to see how organic farmers run their seed bank.

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Director, Ishii-san, showed us over the collection after visiting his mother-in-law, Kimie’s, farm,

The Natural Seed Network has 5600 organic farmers nationally, 20 of whom produce seeds for the seed bank. Some are natural farming method farmers who reject the use of manures and even compost, claiming their produce is more healthy.

The seed bank is housed in the cold room of the distributor of organic produce. Ishii-san has an easy method of recording incoming and outgoing seeds, a clipboard with forms to fill in. Farmers are expected to return seeds, but not all of them do.

The seed bank had an air of order.

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Hervey Bay Seed Savers distributes seeds

Posted Sat, 07/11/2009 - 13:22 by Jude Fanton

The Hervey Bay Seed Savers Network has just distributed 2000 packets of pigeon peas via letterbox drop around town with information on Transition Town Hervey Bay.

Beyond Organics in Ginza

Posted Sat, 07/11/2009 - 13:20 by Jude Fanton

Dorobushi is a restaurant in Ginza, a smart shopping area of Tokyo. But it is different to all the others. The owner has made a commitment to using not only ingredients grown organically but those from natural farming method that does not use any inputs. Last night we were guests of the restaurant for a meal of vegetables and rice eaten with students of The Seed Meister.

Mishima Elementary School Collects and Saves Seeds

Posted Sat, 07/11/2009 - 13:17 by Jude Fanton

The principal of this school was concerned about a local variety of persimmon becoming hard to locate. He and Nikko-san, the head of Chiba Prefecture Museum, have devised a project to save this and other local varieties of local fruits and vegetables.

Jude and Michel Fanton, middle back, with students at Mishima Elementary School holding okra seeds that they grew and saved.

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Grandmas maintain local varieties

Posted Thu, 05/11/2009 - 14:43 by Jude Fanton

While we can admire a market gardener who takes the initiative to save seeds of local varieties, it is home gardeners that give us most joy. And they maintain much more biodiversity. Especially grandmothers.

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