The value of powdery mildew resistance in grapes: Evidence from California

Powdery mildew (PM) is a fungal disease that damages many crops, including grapes. In California, wine, raisin, and table grapes contributed over $3.9 billion to the value of farm production in 2011. Grape varieties with resistance to powdery mildew are currently being developed, using either conventional or transgenic approaches, each of which has associated advantages and disadvantages. PM-resistant varieties of grapes could yield large economic benefits to California grape growers—potentially allowing cost savings as high as $48 million per year in the subset of the industry covered by our analysis (Crimson Seedless table grapes, all raisin grapes, and Central Coast Chardonnay wine grapes), but benefits range widely across the different grape production systems.

[1]  Kabir P. Tumber,et al.  Economic Consequences of Pierce’s Disease and Related Policy in the California Winegrape Industry , 2013 .

[2]  Kabir P. Tumber,et al.  The Costs of Pierce's Disease in the California Winegrape Industry , 2012 .

[3]  Julian M. Alston,et al.  A meta-analysis of rates of return to agricultural R&D : ex pede Herculem? , 2000 .

[4]  Kabir P. Tumber,et al.  Pierce's disease costs California $104 million per year , 2014 .

[5]  B. Novotny,et al.  Working Paper 12 , 2015 .

[6]  Travis J. Lybbert,et al.  Multi-Dimensional Responses to Risk Information: How do Winegrape Growers Respond to Disease Forecasts and to What Environmental Effect? , 2012 .

[7]  A. Wexler,et al.  Airborne particles in the San Joaquin Valley may affect human health , 2010 .

[8]  T. Lybbert,et al.  California Wine Grape Growers ’ Use of Powdery Mildew Forecasts , 2008 .

[9]  Kiyoung Lee,et al.  Absence of Respiratory Inflammatory Reaction of Elemental Sulfur Using the California Pesticide Illness Database and a Mouse Model , 2005, Journal of agromedicine.

[10]  J. Alston,et al.  Persistence Pays: U.S. Agricultural Productivity Growth and the Benefits from Public R&D Spending , 2009 .

[11]  Organic Alfalfa Hay.  SAMPLE COSTS TO ESTABLISH AND PRODUCE , 2013 .

[12]  L. Soler,et al.  An experimental study of wine consumers’ willingness to pay for environmental characteristics , 2008 .

[13]  V. Ruttan,et al.  The Economics of Innovation and Technical Change in Agriculture , 2010 .

[14]  David Zilberman,et al.  The Econometrics of Damage Control: Why Specification Matters , 1986 .

[15]  V. Rich.  Personal communication , 1989, Nature.

[16]  T. Schmit,et al.  Consumer Valuation of Environmentally Friendly Production Practices in Wines, considering Asymmetric Information and Sensory Effects , 2013 .

[17]  Julian M. Alston,et al.  Assessing the Returns to R&D on Perennial Crops: The Costs and Benefits of Pierce's Disease Research in the California Winegrape Industry , 2013 .

[18]  M. Qaim.  The Economics of Genetically Modified Crops , 2009 .

[19]  J. Kovach,et al.  A Method to Measure the Environmental Impact of Pesticides , 1992 .