**AWARDS ISSUED PRIOR TO JANUARY 20, 2025, WERE FUNDED UNDER PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATIONS AND MAY NOT REFLECT THE PRIORITIES AND POLICIES OF THE CURRENT ADMINISTRATION.** PLANT BREEDING PROGRAMS ARE CRITICAL FOR ADDRESSING GLOBAL FOOD PRODUCTION NEEDS AS THE HUMAN POPULATION APPROACHES NINE BILLION. GENETIC IMPROVEMENTS IN YIELD, STRESS TOLERANCE, DISEASE RESISTANCE AND POST-HARVEST QUALITY ARE REQUIRED IN EVERY CROP. PLANT BREEDERS HAVE PRODUCED STEADY GAINS IN ALL THESE AREAS OVER THE PAST CENTURY (PROHENS, 2011). HOWEVER, CURRENT RATES OF YIELD INCREASES IN MANY CRITICAL SPECIES SUCH AS WHEAT, RICE, CORN AND SOY REMAIN INSUFFICIENT TO MEET THE FUTURE GLOBAL DEMANDS (RAY ET AL., 2013). INNOVATIONS IN THE PROCESS OF PLANT BREEDING CAN HELP TO FILL THIS GAP.WE BELIEVE THAT INCREASING THE USE OF MULTIPLE-TRAIT BREEDING METHODS CAN BROADLY ACCELERATE CROP IMPROVEMENT PROGRAMS. MEASURING MULTIPLE TRAITS AT ONCE AND MODELING THEIR RELATIONSHIPS CAN HELP INCREASE THE RATE OF GAIN IN A SINGLE TARGET TRAIT AND IS CRITICAL FOR IMPROVING SUITES OF TRAITS AT ONCE. HOWEVER, THE VAST MAJORITY OF STATISTICAL MODELS USED IN PLANT BREEDING TODAY HANDLE ONLY A SINGLETRAIT (OR AT MOST A FEW TRAITS) AT A TIME. MULTIPLE-TRAIT DATA, ON THE OTHER HAND, IS WIDELY AVAILABLE. HIGH-THROUGHPUT PHENOTYPING TECHNOLOGIES -- SUCH AS HYPERSPECTRAL IMAGING AND MOLECULAR PROFILING -- ARE BECOMING ACCESSIBLE TO MANY BREEDING PROGRAMS AND PROVIDE NEW TYPES OF DATA TO INFORM SELECTION DECISIONS. BUT EVEN TRADITIONAL PROGRAMS COLLECT DATA ON MANY TRAITS IN EVERY FIELD, AND WHEN MULTIPLIED ACROSS LOCATIONS OR YEARS (AND CONSIDERING EACH TRAIT IN EACH FIELD AS A DIFFERENT TRAIT), TOTAL TRAIT NUMBERS CAN EASILY REACH INTO THE HUNDREDS. THEREFORE THE DEVELOPMENT OF POWERFUL, EFFICIENT, AND USABLE STATISTICAL TOOLS THAT CAN BE APPLIED TO MANY TRAITS AT ONCE WOULD HAVE AN IMMEDIATE IMPACT ON A WIDE RANGE OF BREEDING PROGRAMS ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND THE WORLD.WE INTEND TO INTRODUCE POWERFUL, FREE, AND USER-FRIENDLY SOFTWARE TO SUPPORT PUBLIC AND PRIVATE BREEDING PROGRAMS IN ANY CROP SPECIES. SPECIFICALLY, OUR SOFTWARE WILL ASSIST BREEDERS TO I) EFFICIENTLY SELECT ON MULTIPLEASPECTS OF QUALITY AND PERFORMANCE AT ONCE, II) ADDRESS LOCAL AND REGIONAL ADAPTATION THROUGH MODELING GENE-ENVIRONMENT INTERACTIONS, AND III) INCORPORATE PHENOMICS DATA INTO GENOMICS-ENABLED PLANT BREEDING SYSTEMS.