Selling The Valley: Wlnegrape growers in California's San Joaquin Valley are forming a trade organization

摘要

FOR too many years, the winegrapes of California's "Big Valley," the mighty San Joaquin, haven't gotten enough respect. At least thaf s the opinion of Nat DiBuduo and Peter Vallis, and they're out to change that perception. "I knew it had really gotten bad when a writer said we were the Detroit of the wine industry," says DiBuduo, the president of Allied Grape Growers, a marketing cooperative with more than 500 grower-members from throughout California. "We grew up here in the valley, and we know howimportant we've been to the wine industry." A first step was taken five years ago, when Central California Winegrowers (CCW) was formed. Vallis, a fourth-generation grower from the Fresno area, is the executive director, and DiBuduo, who is also on American/ Western Fruit Grower's Editorial Advisory Board, serves as CCW's treasurer. While CCW has been useful in implementing events and programs to bring research information to growers and spread the word about the quality of San Joaquin Valley winegrowing, they want to do more. They feel they need an organization to market the valley, and that is beyond the legal scope of CCW, which is a 501(c)3 charity. "We want to do other things, so we need a trade association," says DiBuduo. Adds Vallis: "It's thenext logical step."