Fresno, Calif., (April 23, 2018) – California table grape growers produced 109.1 million boxes in 2017 with a crop value of $1.81 billion.
A majority of the crop is typically consumed domestically and in 2017 that remained true with 64.2 percent of the crop consumed in the U.S. and 35.8 percent consumed in export markets. California table grapes were shipped to 59 countries around the world in 2017 with the top six volume markets being Canada, Mexico, mainland China, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Japan.
“After breaking the 100 million box mark only six years ago, a 109 million box crop has become the new normal for California table grape growers,” said Kathleen Nave, president of the California Table Grape Commission. In 2016, 110 million boxes were shipped at a value of $1.85 billion.
With the 2018 season only weeks away, the commission is gearing up its global campaign for California grapes. “The commission campaign focuses on motivating the trade to promote, and consumers to buy, more California grapes more often,” said Nave.
Grapes from California are available from May through January.