Our seed company started in 1969 in the classrooms of the Faculty of Agronomy of the Universidad Mayor de San Simón UMSS of Cochabamba, Bolivia. In its early phases it received technical and economic support from the Swiss Development Agency (COTESU). In 1986 it became a mixed enterprise, with the public university  and small farmers as shareholders.

The philosophy of SEFO is that the production and marketing of crop seeds fulfills economic and social objectives that are attained best by close cooperation between farmers and institutions.

SEFO provide the farmers with profitable alternatives and so contributes to the improvement of their living standards. For example, in the tropical zone of Yapacaní (Santa Cruz, Bolivia),the small straw huts were replaced with confortable brick houses(see photographs).

Moreover, the company participates in small rural development projects, which include road improvement, erosion control, irrigation infraestructure, sewer systems and school buildings.These works are carried out with materials and logistics provided by COTESU or SEFO and labour of the beneficiaries.