OUR STORY
Semillas Fitó has gone from being a small family business to one of the world's leading seed companies.
Semillas Fitó was founded in 1880 by Ramón Fitó in Sant Martí de Provençals, a town that later became the industrial district of the city of Barcelona known as Poblenou.
Fitó was quite successful in the market thanks to his good work as a farmer, so other farmers requested plots on his farm.
1880
1910 - 1980
In 1910, the second generation of the family led by Antonio Fitó focused on crops and experimented with the first cross-breeding between different types of products, producing the first hybrids.
In 1940 Casimiro Fitó, from the third generation, focused the company’s activity on the seed production. Moreover, the company obtained the concession number 6 to be a Producer of Selected Vegetable Seeds.
Around 1970, the company began to focus on research and bringing out new varieties. In addition, the first F1 hybrids of melon, tomato and pepper were developed in Spain, and a genetic breeding programme was established for other vegetable and agricultural species such as beans, onions and maize, as well as the breeding of new varieties of wheat, forage and vegetables through traditional methods.
In 1990, biotechnology was implemented as a key tool in the breeding and quality control processes.
Up to 1995, Semillas Fitó was 100% dedicated to the national seed market.
In 1997, it began to work strongly on international expansion, focusing on nearby and similar markets in the Mediterranean.
1990 - 1999
2000 - 2009
As a result, in 2000, the first R&D centre outside of Spain opened in Jordan. In addition, more than 300 in-house varieties were produced.
In 2001 the Turkish subsidiary was opened.
In 2006 the company made its leap to Latin America, establishing itself in Mexico and Brazil with a development centre in the area.
In 2007 another development centre was opened in Morocco.
In 2009, the company opened subsidiaries in Mexico and Portugal, and a development centre in China.
In 2010, we ended the year launching a new line of hybrid created for the amateur Hobby sector.
In 2011, we expanded the centre in Almeria to 10 hectares. We also published the Turf Grasses guide, a reference in the sector, written by Josep Cirera: Guide: Turf and How to Grow it.
In 2012, the Swiss company DSP and Fitó collaborated to produce early maturing varieties of maize. Construction began on a new Production Centre in the Maresme (Llavaneras), with a total of 8.5 hectares. Improvements were also made to the facilities in Barcelona, making more space for offices.
2010 - 2012
2013 - 2015
In 2013 the company bought the property of Les Cases de Barbens and began the construction of the Logistics Centre for distributing field crop seeds throughout Southern Europe. The breeding centre for vegetable seeds started its operations in Culiacán, in México.
In 2014, two new subsidiaries were added: the Production Centre in Arica (Chile) and the new subsidiary in la India to supply seeds throughout Southeast Asia.
In 2015, the largest processing and logistics centre for field crop seeds in southern Europe was opened in Les Cases de Barbens. A facility containing 250,000 m3 of warehouses with 60,000 m3 of cold chambers.
In 2016, a new subsidiary was opened in Brazil with the aim of covering the commercial and seed distribution network in South America.
In 2017, the Almeria centre was expanded in three key areas to further professionalize the process of breeding new varieties.
In 2018 Eduard Fitó, from the fifth generation, was named president of the ISF (International Seed Federation).
2016 - 2018
2020
CONTACT US
Check our worldwide sales network
Central office
Selva de Mar 111 08019 Barcelona España
Tel.: 93 303 63 60 · Fax: 93 303 63 73
