Last Updated February 21st, 2023: Have you heard about True North Seed banks and need to verify their details before investing your hard-earned money?
If that’s you, then you’re in the right place.
We’ve compiled an insightful and honest review on what you should expect from this company, based on their history, reputation, customer support, prices relative to similar companies in the industry, seed selection, quality, and strain.
After going through this review, you’ll be equipped with enough information to decide if TNSB is the right seed bank for you.
True North Seed Bank Review:
True North Seed Bank might be one of the most polarizing seed banks in the industry. At one point they were extremely popular and overall had an excellent reputation in the industry. Over the years they’ve become rife with shipping issues, non-germinating seeds, misplaced orders, and an overall poor purchasing experience. At this point in time, I don’t recommend True North Seed Bank…
That being said, I do recommend you use ILGM if you’re located in the USA, or Crop King Seeds if you’re located outside the USA because both of these shops offer an overall better experience with great prices, and seed selections!
Are There Better Seed Banks Available?
How does True North Seed Bank stand up to other seed banks that are around?
History of True North Seed Bank
Unlike most other seed bank dealers, TNSB does not grow or produce any seeds themselves. They’re resellers of seed breeders from around the world, which means they do all the sourcing for quality seed farms and bring them directly to your door.
The company is headquartered in Toronto, Canada because of the favorable cannabis laws and the close proximity to the United States. They originally started out as sole dealers of medical cannabis seeds, but quickly expanded into all strain types.
When marijuana was legalized in Canada, distributing seeds to recreational buyers became easier, and being the smart group they are, they doubled down on sourcing excellent recreational cannabis seeds.
But, True North is still a relatively young company in the industry. It’s difficult to find a lot of information about their start-up or how they became the company they are today.
To be honest, there isn’t much information on them related to their founding. Most of the time you would see a company history within their “About Us” page, but as long as they meet their customers’ demands, who cares, really?
True North’s claim to faim is not only quality seeds, but producing 100% fresh marijuana seeds.
It’s an interesting claim and one we’re going to review as we get to the nitty-gritty of our analysis.
True North Seed Bank Reputation
Based on the information available about TNS online, the company is still unknown compared to the big players in the industry.
They are just a budding brand trying to gain popularity, and even most marijuana pro’s might not recognize their brand upon first mention.
Many people tend to run away from companies like this, and some may even think they are not legit.
But be rest assured that TNS is not a scam. We have a lot of evidence of customers placing orders with them and coming out unscathed. Most even had great experiences.
However, it is obvious that they have a lot of brand visibility and marketing to do. Being a lowkey company is costing them potential companies, which means they’re leaving a lot of money on the table.
Another issue with a reputation like this is that cannabis growers will not invest in brands whose name isn’t on everybody’s lips in the industry. Growers rely a lot on reviews, and the size of customers is a major determinant for this.
According to the few reviews they have online, if being relatively unknown is a bane on their brand, their seed strain quality, and freshness are doing well to keep their reputation in balance.
Obviously, there are a couple bad reviews, but even the best companies have them from time to time.
Hopefully, TNSB realizes the potential they have to become big in the industry, and so doing, invest more in their visibility. This way, their reputation can earn the trust of growers and customers.
True North Seed Bank Selection (5/5)
When it comes to seed selection, then you can count on True North.
One of the reasons for this is that they act as distributors for high-quality breeders, so they are like a bank of fresh seed strain options.
Going through their website, you will see various selection offers such as new arrivals, their bestsellers, and they also recommend strains for you.
The ease of searching for the right seed on the website is very impressive.
TNSB knows that most companies cannot equal their variety of seeds in the industry due to how they operate, so they have intelligently made this one of their brand strengths.
With over 1,600 seed strains, searching through and selecting your choice from the website is simple, even if you’re a beginner grower.
Their options to select seeds include 43 seedbanks, flowering type of the plants, the THC content of the plant, CBD content of the plant, therapeutic benefits, flavor, varieties, height of plants, yield of plants, and a lot more.
Of these filter options, medicinal and flavor are the most useful. The website provides strains for more than 30 medical issues such as depression, cancer, pain, etc. For flavors, they have ammonia, blue cheese, and the likes.
TNSB seed varieties include regular, auto-flowering, feminized, auto regular, and auto feminized seeds.
They also have seeds suited for various conditions like greenhouses, outdoor growth, and indoor growth.
Whatever your demand is, this company has a seed for you.
True North Seed Bank Quality (3.5/5)
But what do all these seed selections count for without quality? Does TNSB selection match the quality of their seed? Let’s find out.
Do not forget that True North is not a seed producer. They are just distributors for other companies.
This doesn’t mean we can’t absolve them of the quality issues. Yes, they might be a reseller, but they’ve taken on the responsibility to sell quality seeds as the “experts” in the space.
From our research there hasn’t been big issues with quality, but the best way to protect yourself when purchasing from TNSB is to pay close attention to some of the seed bank farms they sell for.
The popular ones are Sensi seed, DNA Genetics, Dinafem, Dutch Passion, and Serious Seeds. These seed banks are very popular and some of the best from the Netherlands and Spain.
Working closely with companies from Amsterdam, regarded as holy ground for cannabis globally, is enough evidence that True North is concerned about their seed selection as much as their seed quality.
The seed’s freshness is a major issue for distribution companies because they always have a large stock available. But TNSB does a good job of keeping them fresh and ready for your orders at all times.
However, the quality of seeds will vary from one brand to another, so the quality might not be consistent enough, leading to varying customer reviews.
Being a middle man, there is little TNS can do in a situation like this to take more control of the product, so make sure to voice your concerns if quality isn’t up to standard.
Customer Service (3.5/5)
Because of the internet, people have more options to shop than ever before. It takes both a quality product and excellent customer service to keep and grow customers over time. How does TNSB fare in this aspect?
Communicating with TNS is stress-free, and their website’s “contact us” page provides enough access to them via email contact, phone numbers for Canadian, American, and other international customers. They also give details about their office hours.
However, some customers complain about the difficulties of getting in contact with them, and the online reviews are fairly inconsistent related to their customer service.
Most of the negative reviews are about poor communication and slow shipping as the main consumer headaches, which are only about 3 out of 10 reviews.
In all, we’ve found that out of every 10 reviews available online, there are 5 positives ones.
This is a decent ratio because many customers will only give reviews when they have a bad experience.
However, the efficiency of customer support depends on the seriousness of the issue at hand.
From our research, we’ve found the True North team to be good about helping as much as possible with your complaints if they’re serious and warrant special attention.
Yes, rare situations of miscommunication were discovered, but this can happen to even the best and most reputable companies out there. Just look at AT&T for example…
Even with it’s customer size, True North has a relatively low wait time than other companies.
Shipping (3/5)
TNSB’s seamless shipping is another major benefit of doing business with them. It’s very easy, and they ship seeds internationally to any part of the world.
They also have a disclaimer for people ordering from countries where marijuana is still illegal; hence they will not be liable for legal complications resulting from your purchase.
Their website also provides details of their shipping costs. In the US and Canada, the price is $20-$30 for all orders.
The prices vary for different countries, with rates between $20-$180. The company ships products from either the Uk or Canada, and they offer other shipping services like tracking of orders, discreet and secure packaging, and delivery insurance.
If you are a customer in Australia and North America, they have you covered with various shipping safety options.
True North will recommend using the Stealth shipping option where your seeds will be packaged with another item to keep them discreet.
Unlike most other companies, TNSB is ready to help you out as best they can, as soon as you reach out to the customer service for any shipping issue.
There is also a return option for packages received within seven days of placing an order, as long as you send back the items in good condition and with the original package.
Since we are in an age where shipping can be as fast as the same day, one drawback of TNSB shipping is the number of days it takes.
Europe to North America has a duration of between 5 to 14 days and 3 to 14 days, respectively. Shipment for other parts of the world depends on location. Some even take as much as 25 days to deliver, which today seems like forever.
Overall, everything about their shipping is fine except the costly prices and the lengthy duration.
Pricing (3.5/5)
As Expected, TNSB has conflicting prices because they are a major distributor, and the price mainly depends on the breeding company.
But basically, the higher the quality of a seed, the more expensive it is, so you should expect to pay less if you are all about seed quality.
TNSB makes payment quite easy with its many options such as credit and debit cards, cryptocurrencies, cash, and electronic transfers.
However, TNSB prices are more than those of the breeding companies because this is how they make their profit. But the difference in prices is not really on the high side.
If you want the standard price for a seed strain, you have to order directly from the source, but that can be difficult because most seed farms don’t take credit or debit cards.
So basically, you lose some and win some.
Promotions and Discounts (4.5/5)
Deals, promotions, and discounts are features in the cannabis industry that customers mostly look out for before placing an order from a bank.
Everybody loves free offers. TNSB takes advantage of this, and in every order, they give free seeds. So the more you order, the more free seeds you get. This keeps customers coming back.
They also have other sales deals like the 420 special, various seed bank promos, and an opportunity to win free seeds monthly.
For customers who buy on a budget, you will not find many seed banks that offer these enticing deals.
However, the deals are most perfect for those who do not have particular preferences for the type of seeds they get for free.
TNS also has loyalty offers where you can keep earning points until you place the next orders.
Some customers complained about not getting the free seeds when they placed an order. This is no fault of the company because they most likely did not follow the correct procedure.
So here are the steps to follow while placing an order if you want to benefit from these freebies:
- After adding all your seeds to the cart, view the cart.
- At the top part of the cart, there is a section that includes freebies. From there, add all the free seeds to your cart till that section disappears.
- If you want stealth shipping options, move to the bottom of the page, add them, and check out to place the order.
- For phone calls, you have to provide the customer representative with a list of the freebies you want.
Final Thoughts on True North Seed Bank
True North Seed Bank is quite different from other industry companies because they are not a major producer. They are just distributors.
In terms of reaching the peak of the cannabis industry, they still have a long way to go. They are not even midway through the ladder yet.
There is a huge question mark hovering around their reputation, and this is a major turnoff for most customers, especially those ordering from countries with strict cannabis regulation.
You can make a case for their seed quality, but they are not the producers, and nothing is stopping anyone from placing orders with the breeding banks themselves.
But one aspect where you cannot overlook them is their seed strain selection. You will most likely find a seed you can’t see in other banks there.
But should you order from them?
They are worth the risk if you really want to buy from them, but only if you’re not able to find the specific strains from the breeders themselves.
Other Seed Banks to Consider: