Taking DC By Storm

Taking DC By Storm. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Fruit Grower Report.

Members of the grape and wine industries recently spent some time in DC to talk issues according to the Washington Association of Wine Grape Growers, Vicky Scharlau.

SCHARLAU: Every year the national grape and wine industry gets together in Washington DC for the Grape and Wine Policy Conference. We spent two days talking about the issues that are important and at the door of the industry and then we spend another day or day and a half visiting all of our congressional delegation.

That’s important to make sure the political leaders understand what their actions could help or hinder.

SCHARLAU: We visited with all of our congressional delegation from Washington State just making sure our delegation understands the importance and value of our industry to the state of Washington economically but also as Congress is such a plight, sharing with them how many of the issues that they’re dealing with now impact both the grape and the wine industry.

Scharlau says they hoped to make sure that funding would remain intact in addition work on important programs.

SCHARLAU: We wanted to share the value of items like research, immigration reform and ag labor. The value of estate taxes and excise taxes on the impact on both the wineries and growers, the impact of the Farm Bill and some of the programs that are being considered in the 2012 Farm Bill and their impact on growers.

That’s today’s Fruit Grower Report. I’m Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.