Abstract: The invention presented is a novel method for the extraction of VNTR alleles and for the concomitant detection of polymorphic markers for inherited traits at multiple loci by simultaneous comparison of complex genomes from multiple individuals. The product is designated a Total Representation of Alleles that are Informative for a Trait (TRAIT). These alleles may be used directly as genetic markers or may be used as vehicles to facilitate precise localisation of sequence variations responsible.