Company History

From Our Family Company to Your Family Farm

Latham Seeds was founded in 1947 in Alexander, Iowa, by Willard Latham and his wife, Evelyn. Willard was a farmer and an innovator. He retrofitted a piece of equipment that helped clean and preserve oats against disease. Word spread to farmers in the area, and Latham Seeds was born. Meanwhile, Evelyn ran the “office” from their kitchen. She made numerous trips daily from the house to the outbuildings whenever Willard needed to take a phone call. She was literally the chief cook and bottle washer. Plus, she was the busy mom of four boys under the age of seven with one on the way.

Latham Seeds began by offering certified seed oats and later transitioned into soybean production. Three of Willard’s sons joined the business in the 1960s-70s, and they added a dealer sales component to the company’s production efforts. The third generation of Lathams added hybrid corn and hi-tech forage to the product lineup, providing farmers with even more choices for their fields.

Today we continue to build our business on the foundation Willard provided with a commitment to personal service, tailored solutions and the same spirit of families helping families.

Willard and Evelyn’s family home has been converted into company headquarters, and the former family room serves as the office lobby today. Business meetings have transitioned from the kitchen table to the conference room. Our focus, however, remains on meeting customers’ needs with the most superior varieties of soybean seed, hybrid seed corn and alfalfa seed.

We’re honored to have served farmers for 75 years with the latest seed genetics, highest quality products and hometown service.

We look forward to partnering with farmers for the next 75 years and beyond!