YOUR SOURCE FOR CAWG AND INDUSTRY NEWS. FOR CAWG MEMBERS ONLY. | |
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- CAWG & Wine Institute Release 2022 CA Wine Economic Impact Report
- 2022 California Elections - Is it Over Yet?
- Unions Targeting Nonprofits
- Dry Farming Vineyard Funding
- UW&GS - Sponsor or Advertise Today!
- Upcoming CAWG Webinars
- Webinar Recording: Card Check - What Growers Need to Know
- Healthy Soils Webinar: Building Belowground Biodiversity
- UC Names Two New Agricultural Experiment Stations
- CA Drought Costly to Growers. New Study Shows How Much
- Revitalizing Winery Wastewater in the Vineyard by Cover Cropping
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Biden-Harris Administration Launches Interactive Map Showcasing Wildfire Reduction Projects
- Exciting CAWG Opportunities During Unified!
- Call for Applications for the Ninth Annual California Green Medal Sustainable Winegrowing Leadership Awards
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CAWG and Wine Institute Release 2022 CA Wine Economic Impact Report | |
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Yesterday, CAWG and Wine Institute jointly issued our 2022 Economic Impact of California Wine and Grapes. The report measures the many contributions of the Golden State’s wine community to local, state and national economies.
ECONOMIC IMPACT REPORT HIGHLIGHTS
Impact of California wine and winegrapes on the U.S. economy:
- Employment – 1.1 million full-time equivalent jobs: 422,000 jobs in California; 713,000 jobs in other states
- Annual Economic Activity – $170.5 billion
- Wages & Benefits – $59.9 billion annually
- Annual Taxes – $21.9 billion total: $11.7 billion in federal taxes, $10.2 billion in state and local taxes
- Charitable Contributions – $305.2 million annually
Impact of California wine and winegrapes on the California economy:
- Employment – 422,000 full-time equivalent jobs
- Annual Economic Activity – $73 billion
- Wages & Benefits – $25.9 billion annually
- Annual Taxes – $7.9 billion total: $4.7 billion in federal taxes, $3.2 billion in California and local taxes
- Tourism Visits – 25.2 million wine-related tourist visits annually to California wineries
- Tourism Spending – $8.6 billion in estimated wine visitor-related expenditures annually
- Charitable Contributions – $291.2 million annually
FULL REPORT
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The 2022 General Election is finally wrapping up. This week, Adam Gray (D) conceded to John Duarte (R) in the Central Valley race for an open seat in Congress. This was one of the last races in the nation to be decided. Congratulations Congressman-elect Duarte.
On Monday, the 2023-24 legislative session will convene, and new lawmakers will be sworn into office. This week several close state races were decided:
- Assemblymember Ken Cooley (D-Sacramento) conceded to challenger Josh Hoover (R).
- Assemblymember Suzette Martinez Valladares (R-Los Angeles County) conceded to challenger Pilar Schiavo (D).
- In the Sacramento area Senate race, progressive Democrat Dave Jones conceded to moderate Democrat Angelique Ashby.
- Also in Sacramento, Eric Guerra conceded to moderate Democrat Stephanie Nguyen.
There are still two state legislative races that are too close to call:
- Senator Melissa Hurtado (D-Kern County) is behind challenger David Shepard (R) by 245 votes.
- Christy Holstege (D) is behind Greg Wallis (R) by 20 votes. This Riverside/San Bernardino Assembly race is likely headed to a recount as the lead has switched back and forth this week.
Final election results will be certified by the Secretary of State on December 16.
Stay tuned!
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Unions Targeting Nonprofits | |
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For six straight years when Lorena Gonzalez was in the State Assembly, she had a 100% voting record with Planned Parenthood. She saw herself as a champion for women’s health issues. Nonetheless, Planned Parenthood has now just come under fire by Gonzalez, who is now the Secretary / Treasurer of the California Labor Federation.
Gonzalez recently criticized Planned Parenthood by tweeting, “Workers at Planned Parenthood Orange & San Bernardino Counties are seeking to unionize… and Planned Parenthood has chosen to act like every other anti-union boss. That’s not cool. Union busting is disgusting.” NOTE: Gonzalez, who has been hostilely critical of Elon Musk, is still on Twitter.
In her new role, Gonzalez openly criticizes any efforts that are not actively in favor of unions. She refers to those companies and organizations as being anti-labor, anti-worker, union busting, and worse. So now Gonzalez is bringing California into a multi-state effort to organize Planned Parenthood employees.
While there is no doubt that Gonzalez has taken a howitzer-like aim at California’s agriculture industry, it is important to remember that the primary objective for labor unions is for all employees to join a union. To accomplish this goal, labor unions are coming after each and every company, public agency or nonprofit organization in California that creates a job.
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Dry Farming Vineyard Funding | |
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Dry farming is gaining more interest as California experiences the detrimental effects of climate change and drought. The industry as a whole is exploring a variety of options to react to the reality that our water supply is shrinking every year.
As part of that conversation, the 2022-23 State Budget included $2 million for winegrape dry farming through a grant program at the Department of Water Resources (DWR) Water Efficiency Unit. This week a few CAWG growers, staff and industry leaders met with DWR staff to discuss the science, process, and potential scalability from the grower’s perspective. This information will be helpful in shaping and developing the grant program.
This funding will ultimately help growers implement dry farming operations and will also help the state in gathering crucial data and science to determine the potential for dry farming and how to fully build on that potential. As this program comes together and grant opportunities become available CAWG will share this information with our growers.
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Unified Wine and Grape Symposium
Sponsorship & Advertisement Opportunities Still Available!
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The Unified Symposium is the ideal location to promote your company to thousands of industry professionals who attend. Our varied sponsorship and advertising program offers several different options for all size budgets. Banners and signs in the newly renovated SAFE Credit Union convention center proclaim your presence, print and online ads showcase your product, and exclusive sponsorship opportunities increase your brand visibility.
This is THE wine & grape industry show to attend where you invest in your future and discover new ideas and technologies—a can’t miss!
Sponsorship & Advertisement Opportunities Include
- Program & Exhibit Directory: $10,000
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NEW! Spanish Track Sponsorships: $1,500 - $5,000
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Breakout Session Sponsor: $3,500
- Tote Bag Sponsor: $10,000
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Keynote Speaker Table Sponsor: $1,500
- Welcome Reception Hors D’oeuvres Sponsor: $3,500
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NEW! Charging Station: $7,500
- Thursday General Session Coffee Sponsor: $5,000
- Regional Wine Tasting Sponsor: $2,000
- Escalator Decals: $8,000
- Free Standing Banner: $7,000
- Column Wrap: $6,000
For questions regarding the opportunities available, please contact Jenny Devine or visit unifiedsymposium.org.
VIEW BROCHURE
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Webinar Recording: Card Check - What Growers Need to Know | |
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Every agricultural employer in California needs to be prepared for potential increased union organizing activities as early as January 1. This webinar focused on the new card check law that takes effect in 2023, and the proposed changes which will be considered by the legislature next year.
Please see the full recording below.
RECORDING: Card Check – What Employers Need to Know
*You will need to register to watch the recording.
PRESENTATION: Card Check Slide Deck
CAWG will continue to provide information on card check, look for regional meetings, additional webinars and fact sheets!
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Healthy Soils Webinar: Building Belowground Biodiversity | |
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WHEN: December 5 at 10:00am
More than a quarter of the world’s biodiversity lives belowground, in our soils. And about a third of the biodiversity in the United States is right here in California.
California farmers and ranchers understand the fundamental importance of the soil that is the foundation of their work – and scientists are working to help all of us understand it even better. Join a panel of experts on Monday, December 5 for a free webinar: Building Belowground Biodiversity.
The California Department of Food and Agriculture is working alongside our growers to improve soil health, in part by convening the Belowground Biodiversity Advisory Committee, made up of world-renowned scientists, to generate recommendations on biodiversity indicators as a proxy of soil health and ecosystem functions. Four of our committee members make up our webinar panel for this special Healthy Soils Week event. Presenters will also share some of the work they have completed.
REGISTER
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UC Names Two New Agricultural Experiment Stations | |
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Provided by the National Grape Research Alliance
UC Merced and UC Santa Cruz this month were named agricultural experiment stations (AES). They are the first campuses in the University of California (UC) system in more than 50 years to earn the designation. “With the AES designation, Santa Cruz and Merced have the potential additional funding from the university’s budget for (agricultural) research, and they will be able to make a stronger case for competitive grants in the larger research area,” said UC President Michael Drake, announcing the new designation.
Three other UC campuses—Berkeley, Davis and Riverside—hold the AES designation and bring their individual expertise to California agriculture. UC Merced, in the central San Joaquin Valley, home to vast table and wine grape production, adds an engineering perspective through its focus on precision agriculture, including robotics to improve the food-water-energy nexus. Scientists there also look at agriculture through the lens of management of complex systems by examining water, climate and wildfire challenges; examine opportunities in soil health, air quality and the reuse of agricultural byproducts; and delve into social justice by investigating the labor force and agriculture’s effects on the communities of the San Joaquin Valley—including public health impacts and disparities. UC Santa Cruz has a long history of groundbreaking work in agroecology and regenerative agriculture. With its Center for Agroecology and ongoing efforts among campus researchers to find new ways to fight agricultural disease and pests without using chemicals, the campus has a well-earned reputation as a trailblazer in organic agriculture.
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CA Drought Costly to Growers. New Study Shows How Much | |
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As California prepares for a fourth consecutive year of drought and farmland across the Golden State increasingly goes idle, growers continue to face mounting economic challenges. In a new report about the financial toll of the state’s extreme drought conditions, researchers estimated that the state’s irrigated farmland dropped by 752,000 acres, or nearly 10%, from 2019 to 2022.
Fields meant to harvest rice, almonds and other crops are instead going unplanted, causing the level of fallowed land across California to surpass the prior peak seen during the state’s last drought that ran from 2012 to 2016.
As a result, the researchers found, California crop revenues fell by $1.7 billion, or 4.6%, during that time, and the state’s agriculture and food processing sectors lost more than 19,000 jobs — serious tolls that are worsening each year the drought drags on.
READ MORE
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Revitalizing Winery Wastewater in the Vineyard by Cover Cropping | |
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Amidst the current drought, growers can use all the water they can get, and recycling winery wastewater back into the vineyard would seem like a nice idea — except that water from the wineries are generally high in salts/chlorides, which would prove detrimental to soil health… unless certain cover crops planted down vineyard rows could remove the unwanted additives. Watch this brief video with Kristy Sun from the Dept. of Viticulture & Enology at Fresno State as she explains, and read more about it in American Vineyard Magazine.
WATCH VIDEO
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The Biden-Harris Administration is announcing that the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service has launched a new interactive map showing the progress the agency and its partners have made in addressing the wildfire crisis in eight western states as part of the Forest Service’s 10-year wildfire crisis strategy. This easy-to-use “story map” gives users the opportunity to see the impact of the historic investments from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law across 10 initial landscapes in Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Montana, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona. | |
Exciting CAWG Opportunities During Unified | |
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There are several different CAWG opportunities to take advantage of during the Unified Wine & Grape Symposium.
CAWG Member Discount
Your CAWG membership entitles you to a $200 discount on your 2023 UW&GS registration. To secure your pre-registration discount, you must register no later than January 17, 2023. The registration discount may be used for all employees of your company, so the more you register, the more you save! You will need your CAWG code to register. Click here to register for the Unified Wine & Grape Symposium
CAWG Conference Room Rental
Need a plate to meet during the 2023 UW&GS? The CAWG Conference Room is located just two blocks from the SAFE Credit Union Convention Center & across from the Hyatt. The room includes internet access, space for up to 30 people, screen and conference room phone. You are allowed to bring in outside food and beverage. The room is available from 8 am - 5 pm, January 24 - 26, for $100/hr. ONLY available to CAWG Members!
Awards of Excellence Reception
The 2023 CAWG Awards of Excellence Reception will be taking place on Tuesday, January 24, at 6:00 PM, immediately following the Unified Welcome Reception. CAWG will be honoring Dana Merrill, Mesa Vineyard Management as Grower of the Year and Jeanne Malitz, MalitzLaw as Leader of the Year. We invite all CAWG members to join at no cost.
CAWG PAC Event
Join the CAWG PAC for a rockin' good time at the Torch Club on Wednesday, January 25 in downtown Sacramento. Live music will be on tap by Remedy 7, featuring our very own Michael Miiller (CAWG's Director of Government Relations) on drums. Sponsorship Opportunities are available! Click here to register for the CAWG PAC Event.
Questions
CAWG Member Code & Conference Room Rental
Natalie Collins | natalie@cawg.org | 916-379-8995
CAWG Awards of Excellence & CAWG PAC Event
Jenny Devine | jenny@cawg.org | 916-432-0133
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Call for Applications for the Ninth Annual California Green Medal Sustainable Winegrowing Leadership Awards | |
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California vineyards and wineries are encouraged to apply for the 2023 California Green Medal Sustainable Winegrowing Leadership Awards.
Applications are accepted on greenmedal.org through Friday, January 20, 2023!
Vineyards and wineries that participate in a sustainability program in California are eligible to apply in four award categories, recognizing outstanding achievement in sustainability:
Leader Award, given to the vineyard or winery that demonstrates success and innovation in all of the below three areas of sustainable winegrowing and inspires others.
The 2022 California Green Medal recipients were:
- Wente Family Estates, Leader Award
- Trefethen Family Vineyards, Environment Award
- McManis Family Vineyards, Community Award
- Jackson Family Wines, Business Award
Applications are being accepted through Friday, January 20th, 2023
APPLY AT GREENMEDAL.ORG
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