Elisa Hernández, one of Semilla Nueva’s 10 Commercial Technical Advisors, known by the Spanish acronym ATCs, is passionate about her work. “Every year, I work with over 400 small farming families who can transform their lives using our seeds,” she says.

Semilla Nueva’s ATCs are crucial to expanding the use of biofortified seeds in Guatemala. Assigned to different parts of the country, they promote biofortified seeds, establish demonstration plots, and provide technical assistance to small maize farmers. They are Semilla Nueva’s primary link with the farmers we serve.

Elisa is responsible for the northern regions of Ixcán, Quiché, Sayaxché, and Petén. This month, she is working with 40 families, conducting home visits, explaining the advantages of our seeds, and helping farmers improve their yields. “Each time I return to a community, it’s so rewarding to see more and more farmers planting our seeds,” she explains.

One of Elisa’s most memorable experiences was with Gerson Túnchez in the village of Las Muñecas in Ixcán, Quiché. Gerson, his wife, and two children lived in a dirt-floor room with walls built of sticks and mud. Elisa recalls, “Gerson relied on income from occasional odd jobs in his community and had a hard time providing for his family. But last year, he received donated seeds from Semilla Nueva and harvested enough to generate nearly $960 in income”. He used this money to buy wood and cement to improve his home and saved enough to buy seeds for this planting season. He is grateful for our support and looks forward to another successful harvest.”

In Guatemala, it isn’t common to see women working in agriculture. When asked about her decision to study agriculture and to become an ATC, Elisa explains, “I come from a family of women who have taught me that anything is possible. My mother always encouraged us to break the stereotypes and machismo women face in this country.” Elisa believes that professional women have a lot to contribute to the agricultural sector and wants to see more of them pursue careers in related fields. “My message is always: if I can do it, you can too.”

“I love everything about being an ATC–getting up before sunrise, the hard work, the smell of the soil, the beautiful fields planted by the farmers I work with, and the relationships I develop with so many families. I get great satisfaction from knowing I can make a difference in every community I visit.”

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Beltrán Ventura Tum developed a deep respect for the land and a love of farming by accompanying his father to the field as a young boy. “From the time I was little, my father stressed the importance of respecting and caring for the land, and I saw him take great pride in his work,” Beltrán explains.

Before adopting Semilla Nueva’s hybrids three years ago, Beltrán’s yields were often low, especially during periods of drought. “If the weather was bad, I’d lose most of my harvest and whatever was left was of such low quality that I couldn’t sell it. Using Semilla Nueva’s seeds, I always have better harvests and more corn to sell.” Beltrán’s experience confirms our monitoring and evaluation results that show that farmers using our seed experience 54% fewer crop losses due to extreme weather.

Beltrán loans his sheller to others in the community, just asking them to pay for the gasoline it uses. “I’m glad to be able to save time for my neighbors, too.”

Beltrán hopes that other farmers will be able to purchase shellers and other equipment to improve their yields and help others in his community and neighboring areas. “We want our communities to thrive and to be able to give our families and children better opportunities,” he says.

Beltrán sees farming as a vocation and a legacy passed down by his father–not just a means to provide for his family. “I am committed to sharing with my children the same values of hard work and respect for the land my father shared with me.”

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Glenn Haughie and his late wife Marlys, childhood sweethearts from Clarkfield, Minnesota, shared a deep passion for improving the lives of others. They married just before Glenn began studies at Harvard Medical School in 1961.

“It wasn’t until their retirement in Naples, Florida, that Glenn and Marlys turned their attention to Guatemala.”

The Haughies made the first of three trips to the region to visit the Escuela Jim Smith, an elementary school in Palín, Guatemala. The school was built in memory of a member of their church community (and by pure coincidence, the father of Semilla Nueva’s current Board President, Dave Smith) with the help of Miracles in Action (MIA), a nonprofit based in Antigua, Guatemala. On that trip, MIA founder Penny Rambacher introduced Glenn and Marlys to Semilla Nueva’s Co-Founder and CEO, Curt Bowen.

“We met Curt in the early days of Semilla Nueva. I remember being so impressed by his passion and intelligence in explaining his vision for fighting malnutrition and rural poverty. I wasn’t sure he would pull it off, but Marlys and I thought he deserved a shot!”

In 2017, Glenn and Marlys helped construct what has become Semilla Nueva’s Research and Breeding Facility in La Maquina, Guatemala. They made this gift in memory of their son, Patrick, who died at the age of eight. The couple later funded the farm’s irrigation system. Both investments were key to establishing Semilla Nueva’s in-house seed breeding capacity.

Curt explains, “Glenn and Marlys funded the farm construction and its irrigation system just as we began thinking about the potential of biofortified corn and the eventual need for a breeding facility. As generous as these gifts were, I don’t think we fully realized how important these investments would become for the future of Semilla Nueva!”

Following Marlys’ passing in August 2023, Glenn honored her memory by funding the installation of a solar electricity system at the farm. This system will eliminate the frequent electricity and internet disruptions that have plagued our Breeding Team. ”Marlys believed strongly in Semilla Nueva’s mission,” Glenn reflected. “I believe she would be very pleased to know this system will empower the organization’s work with light and energy.”

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In February, Semilla Nueva launched its first gene editing project with scientists at the University of Wisconsin. This technology could transform Semilla Nueva’s ability to scale biofortified maize.

“Imagine a pair of tiny precision scissors that allow us to insert a gene for nutrition into the DNA of a maize variety known for its high yields and climate resilience,” explains Enrique Kreff, Semilla Nueva’s Breeding Director. “Gene editing tools like CRISPR allow us to make these changes at the exact location in the plant’s DNA where a desired trait, such as Zinc or Iron content, is located. This approach can bypass years of traditional breeding, making it much cheaper and faster to biofortify any maize seed for any part of the world.”

Enrique explains that since our use of gene editing will involve minor genetic modifications, the resulting seeds will be considered non-GMO.

Until now, Semilla Nueva has relied on a conventional breeding approach called “backcrossing,” through which a desired trait in one variety (such as Zinc content) is introduced into another with desired characteristics (such as high yield) through successive generations of planting, selection, and replanting. This process requires 4-6 years and as much as $300,000 for hybrid related. CRISPR could reduce the time and cost to a year and $30,000, respectively. 

According to Semilla Nueva’s Executive Director, Curt Bowen, “Gene editing could be a real game-changer for us, making it possible to quickly and inexpensively biofortify the best possible seed for any location in the world.”

While its potential is exciting, the use of CRISPR in maize breeding, especially for nutritional improvements, is still relatively new. Enrique explains, “The first step of our three-year project focuses on looking at 15  genes we’ve identified as potentially responsible for improving nutritional content in maize. From there, we’ll select between 4 to 6 of the most promising genes and use CRISPR to biofortify maize developed by the Government of Guatemala for highland regions and well as other seeds for Central America and Africa.”

We look forward to keeping you updated on our progress!

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On March 6, US Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, made opening remarks at a full committee hearing on global food security, discussing the world’s collective failure to tackle this persistent problem, and named Semilla Nueva’s collaboration with USAID as an example of what is needed to improve US foreign aid.

Risch shared data on the extent of the global food security crisis, which, despite billions of dollars spent annually by the US and other countries, leaves 783 million people around the globe suffering from food shortage, 333 million facing acute food insecurity, and an estimated 47 million people on the brink of famine. “These are not just statistics. They are actual people,” Risch said.

Risch explained that new partnerships and approaches to US foreign assistance are needed to overcome long-standing problems such as unclear objectives and excessive bureaucracy of US foreign aid. He singled out Semilla Nueva’s approach as one that works:

“On the development side, we need to work more closely with the private sector to bring innovations to scale. I recently saw an Idaho-based company, Semilla Nueva, won a USAID grant to enhance the quality and adoption of bio-fortified maize in Latin America. We should see more of this type of collaboration” – US Senator Jim Risch

Semilla Nueva has developed a market-based approach to fight malnutrition and rural poverty in countries where maize is the staple. We breed maize seeds with high levels of zinc, iron, and protein, and yields approaching some of the best seeds on the market. We produce these seeds in partnership with local seed companies and work with governments to implement seed subsidies to make the seeds available to the poorest of the poor. According to Semilla Nueva’s CEO, Curt Bowen, small farming families in Guatemala, 70% of whom live on less than a dollar a day per person, choose these seeds because of their yields and resilience to drought and storms. “Farmers switching to our seeds earn an average of $180 while helping their families and other maize consumers eliminate or significantly reduce major nutritional deficiencies.”

The USAID collaboration cited by Richter is a project through which USAID Guatemala and Semilla Nueva are co-designing a national subsidy program to be managed jointly by the Guatemalan Government, local seed producers, and Semilla Nueva. If funded, the project will help us reach 40,000 farmers who will improve the nutrition of over 1.5 million people. The project involves a “fixed amount award,” meaning Semilla Nueva will receive funding in blocks based on achieving milestones and results (seed produced, seed sold, families reached, etc.) instead of the traditional cost reimbursement approach, which requires intensive reporting and paperwork and delays. This is just one example of the efficiencies Risch was referring to in his remarks.

Partnerships and an ongoing commitment to searching for efficiencies and improving the way we get things done are key to our strategy. We are excited to focus on our first national subsidy in Guatemala, as we work to expand our model to El Salvador this year and Honduras next year, and test seeds with partners in Africa in 2026. This progress would not be possible without the growing family of donors, mentors, and partners who make our work possible.

Meet Don Zacarias Bautista Martínez from Comapa, Jutiapa, in southeast Guatemala. He’s a hardworking farmer and father of five who feeds his family with what he grows. His only income comes from maize. His family’s bank account is a big plastic grain silo that holds 2,000 pounds of corn (worth about $400). They sell part of it whenever they need to pay for the kids’ education or buy necessary goods such as medicine or clothes. They also eat about 8 pounds of that corn every day. In good years in the past, they could almost fill the silo, but it would still run out every year. In bad years, they only had enough corn for a few months. Just like most corn farmers, one look inside the silo is all you need to know how safe or stressed the family feels during that season.

Three years ago, Zacarias received a bag of free biofortified seeds from Semilla Nueva and has planted more every year since. He finds that our Fortaleza hybrids are much higher yielding than the seeds he used to sow and hopes to put two of his oldest children in university with the extra income he earns from our seeds. Now Zacharias fills his silo to the brim every year, and last year his family sold $900 of maize to the market. He knows our seeds are more nutritious and give his family strength (“fortaleza,” in Spanish). “They’re more resistant to droughts and storms, too,” he says. “I still plant part of my land with heirloom seeds, and this year, we lost most of that harvest to strong winds. Without Fortaleza, we would have run out of maize.” 

But what Zacarias loves the most about our seeds is their price. “Most farmers like me need improved seeds to increase our yields. But before Fortaleza, we couldn’t afford them,” he tells us. Semilla Nueva’s subsidies allow our seeds to be sold at a price he can afford, and their yields allow him to make enough money to buy even more seeds in the following year. Zacharias has recommended Fortaleza to all the farmers he knows. Now, almost 50 farmer families in his community are filling up their silos and earning hundreds of dollars of extra income and filling their kitchens and feeding their families with nutritious tortillas.

Farmers like Don Zacarias are the best advocates for our work. They want better seeds at prices all farmers can afford, and we at Semilla Nueva want to make sure their voices are heard.

While Semilla Nueva is based in Guatemala, it was really born in Boise, Idaho, rooted in co-founder Curt Bowen’s upbringing on a small organic farm. Its launch in 2010 and its subsequent evolution owe much to the involvement of numerous Boise community members, many of whom remain involved today. Kathleen and Ben Simko are a case in point.

The couple’s journey with Semilla Nueva began in 2011, while Kathleen served as a District Governor for Rotary and helped secure one of Semilla Nueva’s first project grants. Curt quickly recognized Kathleen’s energy and skills, inviting her to join the organization as one of its first board members, focused on identifying new funding opportunities to fuel its mission.

A year later, husband Ben, an entomologist with a passion for sustainable agriculture, joined the Technical Advisory Board to share his expertise with the organization’s small staff. He explains, “Semilla Nueva was in its infancy when we first became involved, but Curt’s enthusiasm and vision inspired us. We could sense the organization’s tremendous potential.”

Semilla Nueva’s mission resonates deeply with Kathleen’s and Ben’s values of supporting communities in need. Over the years, they developed strong bonds with Guatemala and its farming families, on trips during which Ben worked closely with staff and farmers on improved agricultural practices. 

Earlier this year, Kathleen introduced her grandson Jack to Semilla Nueva and the complex challenges facing rural communities in Guatemala. “We wanted Jack to experience daily life in a place like Guatemala, and to understand the importance of giving back through an organization like Semilla Nueva in the future.””This trip allowed me to reflect on how far Semilla Nueva has progressed over the past decade,” Kathleen continued. “Curt has formed an exceptional team committed to doing one thing—biofortified maize seeds—exceptionally well. Ben and I are excited to see where the organization is in another ten years!”

In 2018, just over 4,000 small-scale farmers planted Semilla Nueva’s biofortified seeds. This number tripled to over 12,000 farmers in 2021, and this year, over 20,000 farmers will plant our biofortified seeds, improving the nutrition of nearly 600,000 maize consumers. By 2026, 40,000 farmers will plant our seeds, feeding 1M consumers. Our long-term goal (2036) is for 3M farmers in Central America and Sub-Saharan Africa to plant biofortified maize, feeding 100M annually.

Expanding our reach depends on intensive and constantly evolving annual seed production plans. In 2024, we are aiming to double our seed production. This goal means coordinating the production of 8,500 bags of seed on 225 acres cultivated by 23 small-scale partner farmers. It involves providing technical support for three partner seed companies responsible for producing and selling another 6,500 bags of our seed; and it requires ensuring the quality of seeds delivered to our network of over 100 agrodealers around the country. Our Seed Production Coordinator, Nelcy López, leads this critical work.

Nelcy is a graduate of Zamorano University—the leading agricultural university in Latin America. She joined Semilla Nueva after years of supervising large-scale agricultural production operations in Guatemala. “There aren’t a lot of women doing this kind of work in Central America,” she says. “But I love it! It shows others in the industry and the farming families we serve that women have important roles in agriculture.” 

When asked what she likes most about her work, Nelcy says she enjoys building relationships with the farmers who produce our seeds and knowing the impact our seeds will have on those who plant them. “In 2022, farmers already purchasing improved seeds earned an additional $147-$260 more when switching to our biofortified hybrids. Subsistence farmers using improved seeds for the first time saw their incomes increase by $277-$392 on average. Add to this the nutritional benefits of our seeds and their resistance to storms and drought, and I can go to sleep every night knowing that I am helping to make a real difference in my country.”

As a relatively small nonprofit, Semilla Nueva may seem an unlikely player in the world of advanced crop breeding. Dr. Enrique Kreff, Semilla Nueva’s Director of Research and Development, explains, “We do it because nobody else has developed biofortified maize seeds that can truly compete in the market. We specialize in breeding nutritious, biofortified maize seeds that outperform seeds used by 97% of Guatemalan farmers in terms of yields, climate resilience, appearance, and even taste.”

Enrique joined Semilla Nueva in May of this year. He previously spearheaded the Argentinian government’s maize breeding program and then spent nearly two decades in the private sector leading Pioneer’s maize breeding in Argentina, developing or testing the seeds responsible for over 30% of Argentina’s maize production. Enrique’s expertise includes unraveling the genetic makeup behind specific traits, like resistance to certain pests or diseases, and using those genes to improve new seeds for the market.

Initially, Semilla Nueva worked closely with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) to produce and distribute biofortified maize hybrids developed by CIMMYT. Now that we are launching our own, internally developed hybrids, CIMMYT continues to serve as an essential source of technical advice.

According to Enrique, “Our technical network also includes scientists in the private sector and academia, and a Board of Advisors comprised of some of the world’s top crop breeders. Together, we’re exploring the use of gene markers and gene editing that will drastically reduce time and costs in developing new hybrids while adhering to non-GMO standards.”

 A lot lies ahead for Semilla Nueva. In El Salvador, the government is testing our seeds for its national seed subsidy program for small farmers and in Honduras we are registering our seeds for eventual production and sale by Honduran seed companies.

Enrique adds, “We’re excited about the potential of several of our hybrids currently under development. In a few years, for the first time anywhere, we believe biofortified hybrids will match the performance of the best maize seeds available in the market—an accomplishment that will revolutionize maize production and consumption as we expand our work in Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa.”

Tip your sombreros to our field team!

Semilla Nueva has just ended another successful field day season with one last event in the sunny town of Cuilapa, Santa Rosa, a two-hour drive away from the capital. 

Every year between February and May, at the height of the dry season, and just before farmers choose the  seed they will plant for the year, our field teams travel around the country, organizing field days to promote our biofortified maize seeds. It’s hard work to gather this many farmers, but it’s worth it. 

Our teams post flyers in popular agrodealers’ shops, send WhatsApp invitations to farmers and community leaders, make countless calls, and even drive hours to some of Guatemala’s most isolated communities to make sure our invites reach those who’ll benefit the most from our seeds.

When farmers choose a new seed, they want to know what to expect. They like to see for themselves how it grows in the field and learn new techniques to maximize their harvests.  Our field days are the perfect opportunity for them to get this information.

During these events, farmers learn about our seed’s yields and nutritional benefits. We explain how our subsidy program allows us to sell seeds at such a low price, and answer questions about how tall the plant grows, how well it resists certain pests or diseases, which fertilizer to use, and how much to apply. 

Field days take place on Semilla Nueva demonstration parcels located around the country, where farmers can observe the plants’ attractive characteristics, such as uniform height, strong and abundant roots, and strong stems, which help them respond better to extreme weather conditions. 

Field days are special moments for us. They allow us to meet and build relationships with farmers from all over the country, even the most marginalized ones who do not have access to improved seeds due to low incomes, geographical distance or lack of access to digital communication. Farmers learn about our seed’s economic and health benefits, where to buy them, and how to grow them. They even get to try our tasty biofortified tortillas. 

These events also allow us to get feedback from farmers and better understand their needs. Depending on the region they are from, farmers face different challenges and have different expectations regarding what constitutes a good maize seed. We use everything we learn during our field days to develop even better biofortified seeds for the future. In this sense, field days are just as helpful for us as they are for farmers – and well worth spending a day in the blazing sun.