FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 15, 2025
PORTLAND, OR – The Oregon Seed Council (OSC), whose members supply turfgrass seed to sports organizations, golf courses, stadiums and municipalities around the world, is one of four recipients of the Oregon Consular Corps (OCC) 2025 Global Trailblazer Award.
OSC joins Keen Footwear, Shaniko Wool Co. and Benchmade Knife Company in receiving the award at the Consular Corps’ annual Celebrate Trade Gala, May 15 at the Portland Art Museum.
“We are honored, delighted and extremely privileged to receive this prestigious award,” said OSC Executive Director Megan Chuinard. “It speaks volumes that an organization as noteworthy as the Oregon Consular Corps recognizes the contributions our members make to the health and welfare of people around the world and to Oregon’s economy.”
The OCC Global Trailblazer Award recognizes Oregon individuals, companies and organizations for their contributions to international trade, the Northwest’s economy and quality of life. This year’s theme is Oregon “punches above its weight” in the sports, outdoor and recreation sectors.
Members of OSC, a trade organization that serves Oregon’s world-renown grass seed industry, supply turfgrass seed to many of the world’s premier arenas, stadiums and golf courses. Among noteworthy examples, the industry has provided grass seed for stadiums and practice fields at the last four FIFA World Cup soccer tournaments and the industry supplies grass seed for many world-renowned golf courses, including the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome, which hosted the 2023 Ryder Cup, as well as many of the leading courses in the U.S.
In addition, turfgrass from Oregon enhances recreational opportunities for people at all age ranges and abilities in home lawns, parks, municipal sports fields and other settings. Turfgrass provides multiple environmental benefits through its ability to cool cityscapes and sequester carbon.
“From soccer, to football, to tennis, to baseball, and even games of tag, our seed can be found in a variety of sports and outdoor arenas, fields and other community gathering areas,” Chuinard said.
Oregon grass seed is a major contributor to the state’s economy, generating a farmgate value of $639.1 million in 2022, which ranks fifth among Oregon’s agricultural commodities. The industry creates 10,000 jobs in the state, with many of those in rural areas, areas that benefit greatly from this infusion of capital. Because a good percentage of Oregon produced seed is shipped around the world, the industry is a major contributor to the economic vitality at the Port of Portland with an annual export value of more than $140 million. In addition, a byproduct of the industry, the straw left over after harvest, has become a valuable feed ingredient for cattle and dairy producers in Asia and approximately 600,000 tons of straw from Oregon grass seed fields is shipped annually out of the Port of Portland to Japan, Korea and Taiwan.
Oregon grass seed growers, who lead the world in the production of cool-season grass seed, benefit from the region’s highly productive soils and temperate climate to produce premium quality seed that is valued around the world. Oregon’s 1,300 grass seed farms are known for their stewardship with most seed grown as a perennial crop, meaning soil is largely undisturbed for several years at a time, a farming practice that benefits soil health and preserves water quality. Oregon grass seed farms also are known to sequester carbon at rates far above the U.S. farmland average.
The Oregon Seed Council joins a prestigious list of past recipients of the Oregon Consular Corps’ Global Trailblazer Award, including Tim Boyle and Columbia Sportswear, Intel Corporation, Asiana Airlines, Daimler Trucks North America and Adidas America.
“This honor puts the Oregon Seed Council alongside some of the top business entities to ever operate in Oregon, and for that we are extremely proud,” Chuinard said.
The Oregon Consular Corps is comprised of career and honorary consular officials who serve or have served as representatives of foreign nations and jurisdictions in Oregon and in the Pacific Northwest.
The Corps’ annual Celebrate Trade Gala raises funds for the organization’s Scholarship Fund, which underwrites scholarships for 12 international studies majors at six Oregon universities.
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ABOUT OREGON SEED COUNCIL: The Oregon Seed Council is a trade organization that brings together seed farmers, marketers, brokers, researchers, and others involved in the Oregon seed industry from when the seed is planted to when the seed ultimately makes it to the hands of consumers. Through our membership, the Oregon Seed Council represents approximately 1,300 grass, legume, and specialty seed growers in Oregon, and our industry drives employment in many rural areas of the state, employing an estimated 10,000 Oregonians.
Oregon Seed Council Membership includes:
- Oregon Tall Fescue Commission
- Oregon Fine Fescue Commission
- Oregon Ryegrass Commission
- Oregon Clover Commission
- Oregon Seed Growers League
- Oregon Seed Association
- Tee-2-Green
- Oregon Grass Seed Bargaining Association
- Oregon Meadowfoam Growers Association
- Willamette Valley Specialty Seed Association
- Willamette Valley Oilseed Producers Association
- Oregon Straw Export Association
- Oregon Women for Agriculture (Ex-Officio)
- Oregon Department of Agriculture (Ex-Officio)
- Oregon State University (Ex-Officio)
The Oregon seed industry exports an estimated $162,824,215 in grass, clover, and forage seeds to 56 countries.
