USDA-ARS Celebrates 100 Years of Grape Breeding

On September 11, 2023, at the San Joaquin Valley Agricultural Sciences Center (SJVASC) in Parlier, CA, the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) celebrated the 100th anniversary of the USDA-ARS Grape Breeding Program. Its century of cooperative grape breeding research has impacted the way the world grows, cultivates and consumes grapes—and changed the very grapes themselves.

This historic grapevine breeding program has been developing and introducing high-quality table grape and raisin cultivars with economically important traits for mechanized production (for raisins), disease resistance and more since 1923. Its first invention—a table grape variety—was developed that year in Fresno, CA, at the USDA Experiment Vineyard, part of what was then the USDA Bureau of Plant Industry. In 1972, the program became part of ARS, the chief in-house research agency of the USDA.

Since 1923, the program has developed 21 table grape varieties, including more than half of the top 10 to 15 seedless grape varieties, and 8 raisin varieties, all cultivated worldwide. The red Flame Seedless table grape was developed by ARS scientists in 1973. Prior to its release, seedless grapes were unknown to American consumers. ARS scientists produced seedless black table grapes in 1983 and the green seedless Autumn King table grape in 2006. The release of another red table grape variety, Crimson Seedless, in 1989, further increased table grapes’ popularity. Now grown extensively by domestic and foreign producers, the Flame and Crimson Seedless varieties comprise a significant part of today’s consumer market for table grapes. The Fiesta raisin variety was introduced 50 years ago and remains a major player in the industry.

Stephen Vasquez, technical viticulturist at Sun-Maid Growers of California, and Ross Jones, senior vice president of the California Table Grape Commission, both NGRA member-organizations, spoke at the event. They praised the USDA-ARS Grape Breeding Program, both for its innovation and industry engagement. Proof points of the program’s outsize impact on both industries include:

• The California table grape industry produces 99% of the table grapes grown in the United States and is a major contributor to global markets. In 2021, 97 million 19-pound boxes of grapes worth $2.14 billion were grown in the state.
• The US leads the world in raisin production, accounting for nearly 40% of the global crop. California produces all US raisins. Raisin production in the San Joaquin Valley involves more than 1,700 growers who produce approximately 350,000 tons (dry weight) of raisins per year.

“The phenomenal research conducted by our scientists over the past 100 years created a billion-dollar industry,” said ARS Administrator Dr. Simon Liu, speaking at the event. “As we move into the next 100 years, our collaboration with the San Joaquin Valley Agricultural Sciences Center will continue to deliver innovative research that will produce high-quality, nutritious fruits for future generations.”

This article was adapted from the USDA’s press release, titled “USDA Commemorates 100 Years of Contributions to the Grape Industry,” celebrating this historic milestone. Read it here.