The Oregon grass seed industry is still working through problems related to oversupply.

Demand for grass seed rose sharply during the COVID outbreak in 2020 as people were forced to stay home, convincing farmers and seed companies to continue planting at a high level in 2021, said Bruce Ruddenklau, a farmer near Amity, Ore..

The Oregon industry produced a large crop in 2022, but consumers were no longer as keen on yard work when COVID restrictions were lifted, resulting in a surplus that’s dogged the industry ever since, he said.

“People had other things to do with their life,” Ruddenklau said. “It was a perfect storm of circumstances that led to a massive oversupply.”

As gloomy as things have been for growers, there could be even darker clouds on the horizon, said Garth Mulkey, a farmer near Monmouth, Ore. “I’ve never seen it as bad as I think it’s going to be.”

Though seed companies are required to pay farmers for last year’s grass seed crop by May 1, Mulkey is concerned some of their finances have deteriorated to the point they can’t comply with the law.

“I’m afraid dealers don’t have the ability to write those checks,” he said.

The economic conditions could become worse than they were after the housing crisis and Great Recession of 2008, Mulkey said. Growers don’t have alternative crops that could generate a profit in the short term, so some may go out of business.

“There are very few crops with the same profitability as the last time we were in a bad situation,” he said.

At the same time, dealers are imposing stricter requirements on seed quality in contracts, which adds to the expense of production, since growers must engage in spot-spraying and other practices to reduce weed seeds, he said.

Farmers are taking a “high risk” in producing a crop that may not meet contract specifications and may be rejected come harvest time, Mulkey said.

While industry experts say the inventory of grass seed will eventually decrease, leading to an upswing in prices, the challenge for growers will be to remain solvent until the crop becomes profitable again.

“Profit is what allows us to keep the farm alive and pass it on to the next generation,” said Simmons.