Overview

During 2010, nearly 6.9 million tons of grapes, down 6 percent from 2009, were grown commercially in the United States. California accounted for nearly 6.2 million tons, or 90 percent, of these grapes. Other top grape-growing states included Washington and New York.  (NASS 2011)

Compared to other grape uses, the fresh grape industry accounts for a small portion of the total grapes grown. In 2010 more than 965,000 tons of fresh grapes were produced, with a value of $490.7 million. The largest producer was California, with 956,000 tons, up from 2009.  (NASS 2011)

The decline in U.S. grapes processed into juice continued in 2010, with 400,000 tons of grapes being processed. The average price was $277 per ton, and the total value of the crop was approximately $110.8 million. Washington was again the major producer of grapes used for juice; the state produced 176,000 tons, or 44 percent, of all juice grapes. Other states producing significant quantities of juice grapes include (in order): New York, Pennsylvania and Michigan.  (NASS 2011)   May 2011 ... Grapes

Marketing

• American Society for Enology & Viticulture - A scientific organization for the wine and grape industry.
• American Vineyard Foundation, Napa, California.
• Fresh Deciduous Fruit (Apples, Pears, & Grapes): World Markets and Trade, Foreign Ag Service (FAS), USDA, 2010.
• Fresh-Market Grapes, ERS, USDA, 2007.
• Fruits and Tree Nuts, ERS, USDA.
• Fruit and Tree Nuts Outlook, ERS, USDA, 2011.
• Global Agricultural Trade System (GATS), FAS, USDA, 2010.
• Noncitrus Fruits and Nuts, National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), USDA, 2011.
• U.S. per capita food availability, ERS, USDA, 2008.

Processing/Manufacturing

• Department of Viticulture, University of California-Davis - Information on grape production and enology
• Viticulture, Iowa State University Cooperative Extension - Production guides, budgets and supplies.

Production

• Crop Profile for Grapes in Tennessee, 2008.
• Current Cost and Return Studies, University of California Extension Service - Collection of cost/return analysis studies for a variety of production scenarios.
• Grape, Integrated Pest Management guidelines, University of California, Davis.
• Grapes: Organic Production, ATTRA, National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service, National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT), 2006 - This guide presents organic management options for diseases, insects and weeds, discusses cultivar choices in terms of disease resistance and briefly presents marketing ideas for eastern labrusca-type grapes and organic wines.
• PlantFacts, Ohio State University - This Web site provides a full-text search engine of all extension and academic department information from all land-grant universities in the United States. Additionally, there are significant image and video databases, a FAQ database and a glossary.
• Northwest Berry and Grape Information Network, Oregon State University - Cultural information, research, and market and trade information for grapes.
• Recent Trends in the California Wine Grape Industry; Richard Volpe, Richard Green, Dale Heien and Richard Howitt; Giannini Foundation of Agricultural Economics; University of California, ARE Update, 2008 - Over the last 30 years, the wine grape industry has expanded rapidly in acreage and production. As shown in this paper, growth has been driven by changes in consumer demand and has not been uniform across grape varieties or in the major growing regions.
• Sample Costs to Establish a Vineyard and Produce Winegrapes, University of California Cooperative Extension, 2010.
• Viticulture & Enology Research Center, California State University, Fresno.

Businesses/Case Studies

• Ahead of the Curve, Rodale Institute, 2005 - Phil Coturri has been growing organic wine grapes in Sonoma for 25 years, and 10 years ago helped set the trend for organic olive oil production in California.
• F. Teldeschi Winery, Healdsburg, California, 2008 - This winery, located in Sonoma County's wine country, is a family-owned business that sells 95 percent of its grapes to local wineries in the area with the remaining grapes used to produce small quantities of their high-quality wine sold throughout the world.
• Grapes, The New American Farmer, Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE), USDA - Describes an operation located in Washington.
• Lodi Winegrape Commission, Lodi, California - Funded in 1991, the Commission serves to raise awareness of the Lodi - Woodbridge winegrape production region among the wine trade, the press and consumers and to provide growers with information, materials, education and strategies directed at profit improvement.
• Leaning Oaks Vineyard, Spring Branch, Texas - This vineyard yields several grape varietals: cabernet sauvignon, sangiovese and zinfandel, all red grapes, and chardonnay and sauvignon blanc, both white grapes. But rather than turning it around to be bottled and sold, Fasano processes the wine into sauces and jellies, cooking out the alcohol while preserving its aroma and taste profile.
• National Grape Cooperative Association, Ag Marketing Resource Center, 2003 - Jack Kaplan, an entrepreneur, purchased a small grape processing facility in 1933 from some investment bankers in Brocton, New York, and called his new company National Grape Corporation.
• Northern Vineyard Winery, Ag Marketing Resource Center, 2002.
• Northern Vineyards Winery, New Generation Cooperatives: Case Study, Illinois, Council on Food and Agricultural Research and the Illinois Institute for Rural Affairs.
• Welch Foods, Inc., Ag Marketing Resource Center, 2003 - Welch Foods, Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the National Grape Cooperative Association, Inc. (National Grape).
   

Links checked May 2011.