The Kokopelli Association was created in 1999 from the legacy of the seed company “Terre de Semences” that was founded by Dominique Guillet in 1994.

The Kokopelli association is rooted in an open approach to seed conservation and seed distribution. This vision has its origins in the work done Dominique Guillet in the United States around the concept of “open-pollination”, that is pollination by insects and wind or also manual pollination.

The company has always refused to comply with the obligation to register its varieties in the French seed catalogue, as “old variety for amateur gardeners”. The collection, of about 3,000 varieties of Terre de Semences, became available to members of the Kokopelli association and then to direct sale.

The association has been sued two times in 2005, and the trials had a wide media coverage increasing its notoriety and the numbers of supporters between gardeners and activists.

The association’s seed supplies come from different types of sources, such as a French network of around 10 seed producers/multipliers, but also purchase/resale from external suppliers on the international organic seed market (Switzerland, Italy, United States) or the association’s farm in Ariège.

Kokopelli distributes its seeds through marketing within the store, at fairs and online through its website. It also supports a campaign, “Seeds Without Borders”, to distribute seeds to Southern countries.

In June 2018 Kokopelli organised the festival: “Les Tambours de Gaïa” with conferences, workshops and concerts. The event was attended by an estimated 3,000 public.

Download the Case Study Analysis