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Bold economic leadership needed to save iconic California industries

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California’s wine industry is in trouble — and it’s not alone.

Several industries that are at the core of California’s economy — and our identity — are confronting the greatest challenges they have ever faced.

The wine industry is being squeezed from both sides.

On the demand side, young consumers are growing less interested in wine. Some are interested in other drinks, or in legal marijuana. Others, especially in the age of weight-loss drugs, have lost interest in alcohol altogether.

On the supply side, a series of severe droughts in the past decade led to over-pumping of the underground aquifer, which prompted the state to intervene and charge farmers for what had once been a common resource.

Now, vineyards have to pay almost $99 per acre to irrigate their lands — adding costs to each barrel of wine.

Ironically, the last several winters have been very wet — meaning that there is lots of fruit on the vine. Much of it is being left to rot. 

The Trump........

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