Fishing in the gene pool – how useful was the catch?

A commentary on the highlights of the 2013 EUCARPIA (the European Associationc for Research on Plant Breeding) Plant Genetic Resources Section meeting at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences in Alnarp is presented here. The central theme of the meeting was the use of plant genetic resources in pre-breeding programmes, particularly in the context of incipient climate change and human population pressure.