Vegetable Seed Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

Vegetable Seed Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The vegetable seed market is projected to register a CAGR of 4.8% during the forecast period, 2022-2027. Most companies in the Asia-Pacific region reported a negative effect on the demand and sale of sowing seeds for all crops amid the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. The innovation and new product development came to a standstill as the R&D departments of many companies were non-functioning due to the hindrance owing to the lack of working staff and accommodation facilities for the researchers at the place of field research. In India, with restricted operations of ports and testing labs, the import of high-quality vegetable seeds has been significantly impacted, forcing farmers to opt for low-quality seeds. However, in mid-2020, an uptake in demand for small seed packs for growing in the garden was observed. A similar trend was observed in other parts of the world as well.

Asia-Pacific is identified to be the fastest-growing market. The demand for vegetable seeds, especially in developing countries such as China and India, is still untapped, and this provides multinational companies various opportunities for expansion and to widen their customer base. Countries are shifting toward the adoption of high-quality seeds due to the export potential of vegetable seeds in the global market.

The increasing awareness among the farmers related to the benefits of using certified/quality seeds, thereby increasing the demand for developed quality certified seeds over the past few years. This rise increased the farmers' willingness to pay a higher price for quality seeds. The need to produce more from the decreasing per capita arable land to get higher returns was made possible using HYVs and hybrid varieties. This trend is encouraging farmers over the long term to shift their focus from conventional seed sources to packaged seeds that promise better returns.​

Vegetable seed companies are using biotechnology tools to develop varieties with improved agronomic performance, adaptability to climatic conditions, disease and pest resistance, and adaptability to different market segments, like fresh consumption or processing. Increasing investments in the vegetable seed market by prominent companies are intensifying the growth of the seed market. Therefore, the investors in developing countries are looking for IPOs from the seed industry. ​Therefore, the market is anticipated to achieve significant growth in the coming years.

The advancements in seed technology led to the exploration of agricultural sources and the development of genetically modified seeds, hybridization rates, and many others, improving the seed industry's prosperity. The major influential factors for implementing and developing such hybrid and GM seeds are the increased urbanization and population, driving the demand for vegetables globally.

Genetically modified (GM) seeds help multiply crop yield and aid in cultivating robust crop variations. The adoption of the gene modification process in GM seeds is helping in better crop yield, driving the GM seed market. In 2017, Monsanto invented and marketed genetically modified seeds that make a crystalline insecticidal protein from Bacillus thuringiensis, known as Bt. Emerging trends, such as the increasing adoption of drought-tolerant biotech crops and the growing demand for high-yield crops, directly impact the dynamics of the genetically modified seed industry.

Although GM technology in several countries, such as the Philippines, is banned from commercial release, the records show that it proved itself the fastest-adopted technology in agriculture.​ The need to produce more from the decreasing per capita arable land to get higher returns can be possible with HYVs and hybrid varieties. These physical seed enhancements are an alternative approach to other chemical seed invigoration treatments, which provide a better solution for the growing seed market.

The demand for fresh vegetables has been spurred by health-conscious consumers across the region. As agricultural land faces constraints, urban agriculture, such as indoor farming and vertical farming practices, has been scaling up its operations to address the shortage of domestically grown vegetables. ​The vegetable seed market in China is the second-largest in the world, after the United States, and accounts for 21.0% of the global market share. A total of 6,665 new vegetable varieties were registered by vegetable seed companies in China in 2017. The country requires almost 400,000.0 metric tons of vegetable seeds annually to fulfill its vegetable requirements.

Further, according to the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, increasing awareness regarding the consumption of vegetables to meet various dietary requirements and nutritional needs raised the demand for fresh vegetables, consequently leading to an increase in the area of vegetable production in the country to 10.3 million hectares in 2017 from 10.1 million hectares in 2016. ​​In India, most vegetable seed companies are focused on the production of tomatoes, cabbage, eggplant, chili, okra, and cucumber seeds. Increasing demand for processed vegetables in domestic households and the food service industry has been boosting the vegetable seed industry in Japan. As per USDA, the annual consumption of frozen food, including frozen vegetables in Japan, stood at 22.5 kilograms in 2017, increasing 4.8% from the previous year. Monsanto, Syngenta, Pioneer, BioSeed, Pacific Seeds (Advanta), Clause (Limagrain), Bayer, East‐West Seed, ChiaTai, Seed Asia, Advance Seed, Vanda Seed, and Dynamic Seed are the major multinational vegetable seed companies operating in Thailand, occupying around 70% of the market share in the Thai vegetable seed industry. Therefore, the increasing demand for organic vegetables and growing competition between the companies are anticipated to drive the vegetable seed during the forecast period.

The Global Vegetable seed market is consolidated, with major players holding a share of 67.9% of the market and others accounting for 32.1% of the total shares. The top players in the market include Bayer Cropscience AG, Groupe Limagrain, Syngenta AG, Rijk Zwaan Zaadteelt En Zaadhandel BV, BASF SE, Enza Zaden BV, and Sakata Seed Corporation. The companies are majorly involved in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and new developments of hybrid varieties of vegetable seeds in various regions.​ Most companies are concentrating on hybrid vegetable seeds, which are largely backed by patents.

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