05/15/07 Lobbying for Research Dollars

Lobbying for Research Dollars. I'm Greg Martin with today's Fruit Grower Report. Even though the wine grape industry in the Pacific Northwest is a booming business it is important for the industry to continue researching ways to get better, not just bigger. Vicky Scharlau, Executive Director of the Washington Association of Wine Grape Growers recently spent time in Washington D.C. lobbying for research dollars. SCHARLAU: We participated in a trip back to Washington D.C. to really lobby on behalf of the national wine and grape industry. The organization is the National Grape and Wine Initiative and it's really a board of organizations that represent the U.S. grape industry on the wine side, juice, table grape and raisin. Just asking for money is not enough, it's important to know where the monies need to go. SCHARLAU: They came up with a research strategic plan and it covers 5 basic areas. Number one is the understanding and improving quality; two is consumer insights, nutrition and community; three is processing and production efficiency; four is of course sustainable practices and five is extension and education needs. Of course there is no telling when the current Farm Bill be completed but Scharlau says it's important for the wine industry to speak with one voice. SCHARLAU: Especially with specialty crops being such a large component of U.S. agriculture now and with the wine and grape industry being the largest specialty crop group, it positions us well but it just also means that we need to have a very unified voice and be consistent with our message in Washington D.C. That's today's Fruit Grower Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.