Download Grape and Wine Economics Specialist

ECONOMICS OF GRAPE AND WINE ISSUES
Specialist in Cooperative Extension (100% CE)
Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, UC Davis
Position Description: This new UCCE Specialist position will focus on the economics of
grapes and wine. The scope will encompass all end-uses of grapes, including table
grapes, raisins, and juice products, as well as wine; and the entire value chain, including
the natural, environmental and human resources used in production, as well as vineyards,
processors, packers, and wineries, right through to the final consumer. It will cover
economic and policy issues that arise including aspects of resources and the environment
(such as policies related to the use of land, water, and labor); production (such as issues
related to pest-management, varietal improvement and other innovations, and adaptation
to climate change); marketing and trade (including work to understand the roles of
international trade and policy and the rise of new world competitors in Asia and South
America); and policy (including regulations over production and marketing of wine, and
taxation of alcohol). While the position will focus on wine and grape issues, some of the
issues that arise are directly pertinent to other agricultural industries in California,
especially other perennial crops such as tree fruits and nuts, and, as appropriate, the
incumbent would also be expected over time to contribute applied research and outreach
to these other industries. This economist will work in a multidisciplinary fashion, with
faculty from the Departments of Viticulture and Enology, Land, Air, and Water
Resources, and Plant Sciences, and other experts from a range of disciplines with diverse
expertise, as well as with other economists from the Department of Agricultural and
Resource Economics (ARE) and elsewhere that are more specialized within the
economics discipline in particular issues (such as environmental economics agricultural
policy, or marketing). The position will require a Ph.D. in agricultural economics,
economics, agribusiness, or a related field and will be housed in the Department of ARE
at UC Davis.
Justification: Grapes are the highest valued crop and the second-highest valued
agricultural output (after dairy) in California, with production worth $3.0 billion in 2010.
Further, the industry generates substantial additional value in California through the
production of high-value consumer products, tourism, and related activities. The grape
and wine industry is an iconic emblem of California, but the economic and environmental
sustainability and growth of this industry face various challenges including (1)
competition for resources from other segments of California agriculture, by urban
development, and from demand by the broader community for the use of resources for
environmental purposes; (2) competition for markets with increasingly powerful newworld competitors amidst boom and bust cycles in the markets for wine, grapes, and
raisins; (3) an ever-changing regulatory and policy environment; and (4) requirements for
improved technologies to address chronic, evolving and newly emerging pest and disease
threats, to adapt to a changing climate, and to satisfy an ever-changing consumer demand
for new, safer, more varied and cheaper products. The economic research and outreach
needs of this critical industry are not being met satisfactorily by existing UC Senate
faculty and CE Specialists, and the capacity in this area has been shrinking and is
expected to shrink farther with impending retirements in the next few years.
Support for work in this area is reflected in support provided by the National
Grape and Wine Initiative (NGWI), California Association of Winegrape Growers
(CAWG) and other organizations, including the California Department of Food and
Agriculture (CDFA) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture for applied economics
research related to grapes and wine.
Extension: Activities
 Work closely with other campus faculty and county advisors to bring specific
knowledge and expertise to research and extension programs
 Work closely with clientele groups to identify important current and emerging
issues that require research-based knowledge and information
 Develop a strong reputation for objectivity and expertise in order to be a crucial
resource to policy makers and advisors on all public grape and wine issues,
including taxation, health, environmental concerns, and international trade
Extension: Clientele Groups
 Industry organizations including the National Grape and Wine Initiative (NGWI),
the California Association of Winegrape Growers (CAWG), The Wine Institute,
various local and regional grape and wine promotion boards, the American
Vineyard Foundation, the California Table Grape Commission; the Raisin
Administrative Committee, California Raisin Marketing Board, Raisin Bargaining
Association
 California governmental bodies such as CDFA, Air Resources Board, Water
Control Districts, Department of Pesticide Regulation, and CalEPA.
Research:
The key Research Questions this position can address include analysis of:
 Costs and returns in the industry, including pricing of land and other assets
 The competitiveness of California winegrapes, table grapes, and raisins for land
and water in relation to other crops and nonagricultural uses
 Costs and benefits of technological changes in grape production, including drying
on the vine (for raisins), mechanical harvesting and other mechanical innovations,
information technologies, varietal innovations, and in winemaking
 Implications of climate change for the California grape and wine industry, and the
potential for adoption of innovations to adapt to an evolving climate
 Economics of pest and disease management and the related technologies and
regulations, including chronic pests and diseases such as powdery mildew and
invasive species such as the glassy-winged sharpshooter
 Effectiveness of commodity promotion programs and other industry “collective
action” programs such as industry-funded R&D and issues management
 Market developments including potential for domestic and export market growth
for California raisins, table grapes, and wine, and the role of import competition
 Impacts of international trade for production and prices of table grapes, raisins,
and bulk and premium wine in California
 Social and economic costs of wine consumption through public health impacts
 The economics of regulations over the production, marketing, trade, and
consumption of wine, including issues such as geographic appellation and internet
2
wine sales, and regulations and taxes applied to consumption or production
Examples of Publication Outlets include
 Research: peer-reviewed journals such as California Agriculture, American
Journal of Agricultural Economics, Journal of Wine Economics, American
Journal of Viticulture and Enology, as well as
 Outreach: California Agriculture, ARE Update, Choices, Western Economic
Forum, Wines and Vines, UC AIC Issues Briefs, Special reports from CAWG and
industry and other stakeholder groups, Web-based publications
ANR Continuum:
Presently no one is filling the crucial role linking applied research and outreach, and
economists are often asked to participate in a range of projects related to the economics
of grapes and wine. The incumbent would be expected to work with:
 V&E faculty including Douglas Adams, Linda Bisson, Roger Boulton, Susan
Ebeler, Matthew Fidelibus (Kearney), Hildegarde Heymann, James Lapsley,
Mark Matthews, Anita Oberholster, David Smart, Andrew Walker, Andrew
Waterhouse, James Wolpert
 UCD LAWR and Plant Sciences faculty including Toby O’Geen, Louise Jackson,
Alan Bennett, Patrick Brown, Kent Bradford
 UCD ARE faculty who could contribute other specialist expertise to projects on
economics of grapes and wine including Julian Alston, Colin Carter, Roberta
Cook, Rachael Goodhue, Richard Howitt, Karen Klonsky, Travis Lybbert, Pierre
Merel, Philip Martin, Richard Sexton, Daniel Sumner
 UCB and UCR ARE faculty who could contribute other specialist expertise to
projects on economics of grapes and wine including David Zilberman, Gordon
Rausser, David Sunding, Keith Knapp, Ariel Dinar
 CE county staff including Glenn McGourty, Rhonda Smith, Monica Cooper, Paul
Verdegaal, Steve Vasquez, Larry Bettiga, Mark Bettany, Chuck Ingels, Janet
Caprile
 Other programs on the UCD campus including UC Agricultural Issues Center,
Small Farms Center, Sustainable Agriculture Program, Robert Mondavi Institute
Support: This position will receive internal support from the ARE department and the
Giannini Foundation of Agricultural Economics. The department will supply the usual
office, administrative, and transportation support. The Giannini Foundation provides
access to funding, graduate students, and the Foundation’s Outreach Coordinator. SunMaid Raisins supports the creation of this position so strongly, that they are willing to
pledge $10,000.00 per year for the first four years to help fund this position.
Other Support: Sources include USDA programs such as AFRI, and ERS cooperative
agreements, Risk Management Agency education grants, CDFA cooperative agreements,
and industry foundations and foundations such as Bechtel, Packard and Hewlett.
Location: Location at Davis ARE enables the incumbent to have close contact and
collaboration with the department’s other agricultural and resource economists (AES and
UCCE) and talented cadre of graduate students. ARE houses computer services and
3
support staff necessary for economic research and outreach programs. Location on the
Davis campus also provides proximity to colleagues in the Department of V&E.
4