A range of molecular breeding technologies have been developed for forage plant species including both transgenic and non-transgenic methodologies. The application of these technologies has the potential to greatly increase the range of genetic variation that is available for incorporation into breeding programs and its subsequent delivery to producers in the form of improved germplasm. Further developments in plant functional genomics and in detailing the phenotypic effect of genes and alleles both through research in target species and through inference from results from model species will further refine the delivery of new forage cultivars.