The science of plant breeding is crucial to one of humanity’s greatest challenges: the need to feed, clothe, and nourish a growing world population in the face of climate extremes, decreased water availability, demands for renewable energy, and our responsibility for environmental stewardship.

Here we summarize 11 of the biggest milestones and innovations in modern agrigenomics that have supported humankind in meeting this global challenge, including:

• Early breakthroughs in modern plant genetics
• World “firsts” in agricultural biotechnology
• Techniques for gene editing in plants