Barney and Julie Feinblum
On Feb. 11, Colorado State University (CSU) announced the creation of the Julie and Barney Feinblum Herb Garden. The groundbreaking ceremonies are scheduled for April 2026 at CSU’s main campus in Fort Collins, CO.
Endowed through a gift from longtime natural products industry leader Barney Feinblum and his wife Julie, the herb garden will feature medicinal, culinary and tea herbs and serve as a “tangible bridge” between education, research, history and industry.
After training as an industrial engineer at Cornell University, Feinblum moved to Colorado in the early 1970s, where he earned an MBA in finance and met his future wife, Julie. A natural products enthusiast, Julie convinced her husband to take a job at Celestial Seasonings, then a small herbal tea startup. He eventually became the CEO and helped build the company into a national brand. He later served as CEO of Horizon Organic, the first national brand of organic milk in the United States.
As Colorado’s land-grant university and a leader in agriculture, veterinary medicine and food science, CSU is uniquely positioned to house an herb garden that honors the state’s crucial role in shaping how America eats.
The garden will recognize Colorado’s natural products community and give students the opportunity to see, touch and study the plants that launched entire industries—tea, herbal medicine and functional foods.
“You don’t change the world when you’re my age,” Feinblum said. “You do it when you’re young and when you have energy, enthusiasm and a desire to make the world better. That’s why this garden matters. It’s a living classroom. Colorado changed my life. We built a good life here, and we want to give back to the state that gave us so much.”
Feinblum hopes the herb garden will grow into one of the nation’s leading herb collections, supported by both his family and the natural products community.
“In the end, values, science, and entrepreneurship can coexist. You can have values and character in business and still change the world. All you need are a few plants,” Feinblum added.
For more information, visit www.colostate.edu.
