CALIFORNIA BUSINESS MINUTE
California Wine
01-27-12
Hi, I am Tim Johnson and welcome to the California Business Minute.
U.S. and California wine exports for the first 11 months of last year have
broken the previous record for all of 2010.
California grape growers, wineries and exporters account for 9 out of every
10 bottles of U.S. wine sold overseas, according to a recent report by the
San Francisco-based Wine Institute.
Wine export sales from January to November 2011 reached $1.3 billion, up 23%
in value compared with the same period in 2010. Volume increased by 6%. The
value of exports for all of 2010 was $1.1 billion.
Although the countries of the European Union continued to rank first in
consumption of U.S. and California wine, exports to the 27-country bloc grew
by only 10.1% from 2010 to 2011. Exports to second-ranking Canada increased
by 24.4%.
However, sales to third-place Hong Kong jumped by 48.4%, fourth-place Japan
by 42.3%, and fifth-place China by 38.3%.
California is the fourth-biggest wine producer in the world but accounts for
only 4% of the world wine market, a situation that provides Golden State
wineries with ample room for expansion in competing with more established
growers in France, Italy and Spain.
I am Tim Johnson and this has been the California Business Minute.
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