WASHINGTON, D.C. – A study unveiled Wednesday on Capitol Hill finds that the United States' wine, grape and grape products industries contribute more than $162 billion annually to the American economy.
The comprehensive study, titled “The Impact of Wine, Grapes and Grape Products on the American Economy: Family Businesses Building Value”, measures the full economic impact of the grape, wine, grape juice, table grape and raisin industries in terms of employment, agricultural statistics, product revenues, taxes, and many other indices.
The study also considers impacts from the grape, wine, grape juice, table grape and raisin industries, the first time all grape products have been measured in the same study.
MKF Research LLC of Napa Valley conducted the study, introduced Wednesday by the Congressional Wine Caucus, which is co-chaired by North Coast Congressman Mike Thompson.
The Congressional Wine Caucus is a bipartisan, bicameral coalition of U.S. Representatives and Senators with an interest in the grape and wine industry, and currently includes 182 members.
Thompson said Wednesday morning that the impacts from the wine and grape industries reach across all 50 states, and that the study reports numbers that “are tremendously important for the country.”
Among the key findings:
– Employment: 1.1 million full-time equivalent jobs.
– Agriculture: 23,856 grape growers, 934,750 grape bearing acres, $3.5 billion in farm gate grape sales.
– Wine industry direct impact: 4,929 wineries in 2005, up from 2,904 in 2000, a 70 percent increase in five years; wineries now in all 50 states; $11.4 billion in winery sales revenues.
– Wine industry value added: $2.7 billion in distributor share of American wine revenue; $9.8 billion in retail and restaurant share of American wine revenue; 27.3 million wine-related tourist visits; $3 billion estimated wine-related tourism expenditures.
– Other grape products: $1.669 billion retail value of grape juice and grape product sales; $3 billion retail value of table grape sales; $560 million retail value of raisin sales.
– Total taxes paid: $17.1 billion, including $9.1 billion federal and $8 billion state and local.
The U.S. grape and grape products industries are largely concentrated in California, which accounts for virtually all table grapes and raisins, and roughly 90 percent of the nation’s wine production.
California is home to 2,275 wineries of the 4929 the study reported nationwide and has 474,000 grape bearing acres.
In 2005, grapes were the nation's No. 6 crop with a value of more than $3 billion for the fruit alone.
“The large and growing economic impact of the grape and wine industry contrasts with the economic situation of many other American industries,” said Barbara Insel, managing director for research at MKF Research LLC, who oversaw the study.
Insel said the industry has a ripple effect that extends “well beyond the direct impact on its employees to indirect impact on suppliers and induced impact on local communities.”
Wine in particular has an enormous value-added component as a capital-intensive and labor-intensive industry which also generates “wine country” tourism with its economic multiplier effect around the country, she said.
In recent years, wine tourism has been a growing industry in Lake County, which is reclaiming its position as part of wine country, along with Napa, Sonoma and Mendocino counties.
Winegrapes are Lake County's No. 1 crop, valued at more than $38 million in 2005, with the county agriculture commission's report noting 7,500 bearing acres that same year.
"This report demonstrates what an important role the 1st Congressional District of California plays in the national economy," said Thompson. "It also shows how all 50 states can learn from our region's efforts to protect and improve the wine industry. We are at the forefront of efforts to protect our agricultural lands and watersheds. We also produce top-notch research on issues that have a large impact on the wine and grape
industries, such as disease control and sustainable farming practices."
Thompson himself grows sauvignon blanc winegrapes here in Lake County's Big Valley area, said Shannon Gunier, executive director of the Lake County Winegrape Commission.
Gunier said that no studies have been done locally to assess the wine industry's overall economic impact.
Challenges and opportunities
The 30-page report identifies industry challenges, including insufficient federal funding of research and education to ensure long-term growth, a scarcity of skilled labor in all areas of the industry and the inherent climatic risks of any agricultural industry.
At the same time, the study points to many opportunities for the industry. Foremost among those is a growing market for U.S. wine and research showing heath benefits associated with grape and wine consumption.
“As farmers, we are always talking about the climate – the weather outside – but we also recognize that the business climate is just as important for our industry’s growth,” said Jim Bedient, a grower of wine grapes and juice grapes in New York’s Finger Lakes region, and current President of Winegrape Growers of America.
“We can’t control the weather, but the business climate is largely shaped by public policy, so it’s great that our elected officials now know the extent of our economic contribution and are eager to support our future growth,” he said.
Bedient added that immigration reform “is an urgent priority for growers throughout the country.”
Thompson, whose family has been connected to the wine industry for three generations, said the study can aid in developing policy that will help the industry and the economy.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at
{mos_sb_discuss:2}
How to resolve AdBlock issue? 
