The key principles that still persist for Holly Hybrids are symbolized by the holly leaves and berries of their logo: continued friendship and good cheer.

At Holly Hybrids, we’re all focused on making an impact - having the drive, determination and persistence to contribute in all the ways that we can to helping our growers overcome the obstacles and harvest the best sugarbeet crops possible.

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About Us

History

The Holly Sugar company was founded in 1905 in Holly, Colorado. Its founder, Kenneth Schley, liked the name Holly because holly berries were traditional symbols of friendship and good cheer. By 1915, the expanding company built a factory in Sheridan, Wyoming, under the auspices of the Sheridan Sugar Company, of which Holly Sugar was the main shareholder. Over the next 15 years, under the leadership of A.E. Carlton, the company expanded aggressively, adding 10 new factories, including those in Worland and Torrington.

Holly established an agricultural research station in Sheridan in 1936, which today is known as Holly Hybrids. It sought to develop new beet seed varieties to increase sucrose content and yields. The Sheridan sugar factory, in operation since 1915, was dismantled in 1947, though the old buildings are still used for storage and processing of Holly Hybrids beet seed.

In 2005, when Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative purchased Holly Sugar from Imperial Sugar Company (owners since 1988), the Holly Sugar name was relinquished and the name, Spreckels Sugar Company, Inc. was chosen to take its place. Holly Hybrids continued its Sheridan-based seed development and processing operations, unchanged by new ownership.

Today

Today Holly Hybrids shares an alliance with SESVanderHave, a company born of the merger between Vanderhave (Dutch) and SES (Belgium), and together they have become the leading sources of varieties adapted in many sugarbeet growing areas around the world.

Through all the changes of the past years, including improving technologies and tighter links with global markets, the key principles that still persist for Holly Hybrids are symbolized by the holly leaves and berries of their logo: continued friendship and good cheer.

Meeting the Challenge

Any goal worth pursuing may also offer obstacles that prevent that goal from being achieved. However, obstacles can inspire the desire to solve a problem and result in innovation, improvement and great success. In fact, some the greatest accomplishments ever made are the result of finding creative solutions to a dilemma. Holly Hybrids embraced an obstacle and the result was the discovery of a Rhizomania resistant gene. Overcoming obstacles requires a change in thinking and the willingness to try a different approach. At Holly Hybrids, we’re all focused on making an impact - having the drive, determination and persistence to contribute in all the ways that we can to helping our growers overcome the obstacles and harvest the best sugarbeet crops possible.