History of Crites
The First 30 Years
After managing a vegetable canning company in Ohio and later working as a seedsman based
in North Dakota, Willis Crites was all too familiar with the erratic yields and quality of seed
peas grown in the Midwest. Possessing an entrepreneurial spirit, he began to see this as a
potential opportunity—if he could identify an area of the country better suited for seed pea
production than the Heartland. In 1930 his search took him to the Palouse, a region of fertile
soils and rolling hills stretching across portions of Eastern Washington and North-Central
Idaho. Although at that time the Palouse was strictly a grain-producing area, Crites was
convinced that the soil and climate were ideally suited for seed peas. His initial challenge was
to entice a few prominent farmers to give peas a try. Using his considerable charm and
promotional skills, Crites soon found a responsive group of “big field” growers who farmed
in the areas around Moscow, Idaho, and Tekoa, Washington. In 1933, he and nine of those
growers founded Crites-Moscow Growers, Inc., a cooperative, for the purpose of producing,
processing, and
marketing pea seed.
The initial board of
directors of CritesMoscow Growers
doggedly pursued two
critical objectives: (1)
to build a state-of-theart seed processing and
storage facility in
Moscow, and (2) to
develop a superior line
of canning peas. The
processing plant and
warehouse were
completed in 1936.
Superlaska, a new
high-yielding canner
pea variety, was
introduced in 1937 and
achieved commercial
viability in 1938. The
success of Superlaska
launched the young company on a rapid growth trajectory: the customer list grew quickly
from 15 canners to more than 50, and annual seed production rose from 2 million to 5 million
pounds.
Then, in 1943, the company lost its visionary and charismatic leader. Willis Crites died
suddenly at age 57. Merle Stubbs, who had been serving as Director of Research, stepped into
the General Manager position. He, along with Production Manager A.E. Koster and a
dedicated, forward-looking board of directors, ably guided the company through the
remainder of the decade. During the 1950’s, and 1960’s, Crites-Moscow Growers continued
to strengthen its position as a supplier of pea seed mainly to the Midwest and East Coast
canning industry.
Milestones Since 1965
1967
Tom Druffel joined Crites. He began as a field representative and retired 40
years later having served as Assistant General Manager, General Manager, and
Chief Executive Officer—all the while maintaining day-to-day responsibility for
western sales. Through his unwavering commitment to Crites's continued
growth and success, Tom left an indelible mark on the company.
1975
Crites acquired the assets of Western Valley Seed Co. The purchase included a
number of freezer pea lines, including the variety Scout. Prior to acquiring
Western Valley, Crites had only canner varieties. Access to the freezer pea
varieties, and especially to Scout, helped the company expand its market in the
Western U.S. and gain a foothold in Europe.
1978
To help build its European sales, Crites entered into a marketing agreement with
Royal Sluis, a prominent Dutch vegetable seed company founded in 1868.
Royal Sluis agreed to represent selected Crites varieties in England and on the
Continent.
1984
The half-century-old processing plant in Moscow, a wooden structure, was
razed and replaced with a modern concrete and steel facility. The processing
and seed treating lines were totally updated.
1996
Crites acquired exclusive North American marketing rights for the snap bean
varieties of Pop Vriend Seeds, a leading Dutch vegetable seed breeder, producer
and wholesaler.
1999
A Research Center was constructed in Moscow. The Center includes a
greenhouse, a warehouse, offices, and workrooms.
1999
Crites entered into a lease-purchase agreement for a 10-acre parcel of land
located near Quincy, Washington, on the western edge of the Columbia Basin
Irrigation Project. The property contained a large steel-clad onion shed, which
Crites converted into a modern pea processing and storage facility. This major
investment was prompted by the gradual shift of a significant portion of the
company's contracted seed pea acreage from the Palouse region to the irrigated
Columbia Basin. Moreover, many of Crites's important customers operate in the
Quincy area.
2001
The company began marketing sweet corn by forming an alliance with Snowy
River Seeds (now HSR Seeds), an Australian corn seed breeder. Snowy River
wished to expand its U.S. market, while Crites wanted to augment its product
line. The partnership produced dramatic results. By 2010, the Snowy River
variety Prelude had become the predominant sugary sweet corn genotype in the
Northwest processing market.
2001
Crites entered into a working agreement with ProGene Plant Research to handle
dry edible pea stock seed for ProGene customers in the Pacific Northwest. This
working relationship has expanded into supplying stock seed and commercial
seed of ProGene dry pea varieties to customers throughout the U.S. In 2002 the
companies began cooperating on research. The alliance between Crites and
ProGene also includes ProGene's breeding partner, Plant Research (NZ) Ltd.,
based in Canterbury, New Zealand. The three companies work together to bring
high quality dry green pea varieties including Ariel, Aragorn and Banner to the
world food market.
2008
Crites-Moscow Growers, Inc., the cooperative, was restructured and renamed. It
became Crites Seed, Inc., a C corporation.
2009
An exclusive distribution agreement was established between Crites and
Townsend Seeds International Ltd. of Christchurch, New Zealand. This
agreement grants Townsend sales rights of Crites garden pea varieties in New
Zealand, Australia, South Africa, North Africa, Pakistan, and India. Townsend
also serves as an integral part of the Crites supply chain by offering counter
season production.
2010
Crites began producing (in addition to marketing) Pop Vriend bean varieties –
while simultaneously conducting its own breeding program designed to
complement Pop Vriend's by focusing on large-sieve lines. A new greenhouse
to be used primarily for bean breeding was completed at the Quincy location.