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What keeps Renk Seed going?

The Renk family came to the United States from Prussia in 1846 and established a farm at Sun Prairie, Wisconsin. In the late 1920’s the family decided to utilize some of the hybrid technology being developed at the nearby University of Wisconsin-Madison and get into the seed business. Alex Renk is one of the seventh generation Renks on the farm and while they no longer have livestock, the seed business has thrived. He says the key for Renk Seeds is testing. “You have to look at a lot of different plots in a lot of different locations. Our research alone does 50,000 plots a year and that doesn’t include dealer plots and state trials.”

Renk says the seed business has been honed-down to a science where they know what to expect when they put a combination of genetics together allowing them to develop a new trait or characteristic faster. Like many, Renk says he really didn’t know just how much genetic traits like insect or herbicide resistance would impact overall yield. We knew it would have an effect on plants infested with insects or choked-out by weeds but the unknown was the effect lesser infestations were having on yields as well. The reduction of those inhibitors affected yields substantially.

As for 2012, Renk says they are looking at a really good year for the company as many varieties are nearing “sold-out” status.

AUDIO:Renk talks about his company’s history and future 9:37 mp3

Visit Renk Seed’s website here: