Grape breeding, was first started in Brazil by Pereira Barreto in 1895. From 1930 to 1940, Paulino Reech, Nicolau Martorano, and Pedro Araujo, frorn. Amparo, São Paulo, did some breeding work with grapes and obtained several new types 'that proved valuable. In the Instituto Agronômico de Campinas, grape breeding work was initiated in 1943 by the Section of Viticulture. The grape breeding program of the Section of Viticulture aimed at obtaining improved varieties for rootstocks, for fresh fruit and raisin consumption, and also for the making of wines and juice. Besides the specific qualities required for each different use, the types to be selected had to be well adapted to local environmental conditions, present resistance to insect pests and diseases, and also be resistant to handling and shipping. The basic material used in the improvement program consisted of the collection of grape varieties of the Instituto Agronômico that included many European and American standard varieties, supplemented by new and wild types imported from North and Central America. In this program special attention is being given to the production of seedless types and to hybrids between standard European and American varieties and the wild species, Vitis gigas and V. tilixfolia. Results already obtained are very encouraging and indicated that some of the new types are very good as rootstocks, whereas others are excellent for table uses or for wine or juice making.