Obtaining the sequence of the rice genome and lessons learned along the way.

Rice holds the record for the largest number of separate genome projects and for having the genome of two subspecies sequenced. This might be a short-lived record in the genomics era, but it highlights the significance of rice as a food staple and as a model plant for cereal species. Clearly, obtaining the genome sequence four times seems redundant, yet the rationale and motivation for each of these projects is valid; whether it is serving corporate shareholders or the general scientific community. Although the multiple projects resulted in some duplicated efforts, the value of data sharing was obvious and the winner in the end will be the global public.