In the first of a two-part series, we explore the meticulous process of breeding new varieties of sugarcane for the Australian sugar industry. Developing varieties with superior productivity and agronomic traits such as high yield, sugar content (CCS), and good resistance to disease is central to helping the industry to remain productive, sustainable and profitable. It's a process that takes many years of experimental genetic crossing, research and development. In this podcast, Northern Variety Development Manager Dr Felicity Atkin explains how SRA's variety development team, select parent plants to cross pollinate, to produce new genotypes for testing in its variety breeding program.