Back to February 2026 Newsletter
Stop GMO vegetable seeds being sold in Canada
From now on, 2026 will be the year that we will say genetically-modified (GM) vegetable seeds became a real issue in Canada. For decades, we've had GM field crops like corn, soybeans, and canola, but we've always been able to trust that our vegetable seeds were non-GMO. That's because regulations prevented them, or the seed companies themselves only wanted to focus on large-scale agricultural crops that they could control through anti-seed-saving measures.
This year, genetically modified tomato seeds are for sale to gardeners here. More alarming, they can breed true seeds, so anyone can multiply them.
Seeds of Diversity's Perspective
As a seed saving and conservation group, our first concern is that gardeners will save the GM seeds in their gardens, then knowingly or unknowingly share them at seed exchanges. Once other gardeners grow, save, and share those seeds, it will become impossible to say that local community seed exchanges are GMO-free. Once the GM genie is out of the bottle, there's no putting it back!
Tomatoes are strongly self-pollinating, so there is minimal chance of the GM tomatoes crossing with other varieties, but some crossing always occurs. There will be GM genes in the seed supply that nobody can control, or even know about, and that will undermine organic vegetable gardening and farming, as well as the security of our open-pollinated seed supply.
And that's just for self-pollinating tomatoes - we're even more worried about what happens when cross-pollinating GM vegetables get here! It isn't too late to get a handle on GM tomatoes, and we need to do that now.
We are experts in seed conservation, but our friends at the Canadian Biotechnology Action Network (CBAN) are the experts on GM seeds and crops. We look to them for up-to-date information and research, and we stand behind their call to action.
CBAN's Perspective
Here's what the Canadian Biotechnology Action Network asked us to share:
Seedy Saturdays are now on high alert because of the commercial sales of genetically engineered (genetically modified or GM) “Purple Tomato” seeds. These GM “Purple Tomato” seeds are the first GM seeds to be marketed to home gardeners in Canada.
GM garden seeds constitute a direct attack on organic food and farming, and a threat to Canada’s seed supply.
Our ability to continue freely exchanging seeds at seed exchanges is at risk. These GMO tomatoes will produce viable seeds that gardeners can save and unknowingly disperse to other community gardeners through seed exchanges. Once the seeds are spread, re-saved, and re-shared there will be no way toknow whether GMO seeds are present in community seed exchanges. This will not only undermine gardeners' trust in these important seed-sharing efforts, but heritage seed collections will inevitably become contaminated with GMO seeds.
Knowledge is Power!
Read the Canadian Biotechnology Action Network’s (CBAN) latest alerts on GM Garden Seeds and the GM Purple Tomato.
Genetically Engineered “Purple Tomato” Seeds & Fruit Approved in Canada
Protect Our Seeds From New GMOs
Choose Non-GMO Seeds
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