$163 billion grape industry at risk due to spread of grapevine red blotch virus with no known treatment
$3 million grant given to institutions in California and Oregon to address unknowns of disease and mitigate its effects on grape production, wine quality Less than an hour from UC Davis, lie the towns of Napa and Sonoma, both hubs of the $163 billion US grape industry. California-grown grapes makes up 90% of the country’s wine production, yet they are at risk as a currently untreatable grapevine disease spreads rapidly across the country but especially in California and Oregon vineyards.
