REYNOLDSBURG –The Ohio Grape Industries Committee today released its 2016 Economic Impact report, which finds that Ohio’s grape and wine industry has a significant impact of $1.3 billion on the state’s economy and provides 8,067 full-time jobs, with more than 2,700 additional jobs created since 2012.
“This report further demonstrates the growing strength of food and agriculture as Ohio’s number one industry,” said Ohio Department of Agriculture Director David T. Daniels. “Ohio grape growers and wine makers are creating quality, award-winning products that rival those produced in historic wine producing areas like California and Europe. This new study is proof of their success and their impact on Ohio’s economy.”
Highlights of the report include the following:
• 2016’s full economic impact of Ohio wine and grapes is $1.3 billion.
• The number of wineries in the state of Ohio grew from 175 in 2012 to 265 in 2016, an increase of 51 percent.
• The industry provides 8,067 full-time jobs, with more than 2,700 additional jobs created since 2012, with a payroll of roughly $264 million.
• Ohio is the sixth largest wine producer in the country, producing 1.23 million gallons or more than a half-million cases of wine. The Buckeye State was ranked 7th in 2012.
• Ohio is the 9th largest grape producer with 1,500 acres.
• 1.38 million people visited Ohio wineries in 2016, up 16 percent from approximately 1.19 million winery visitors in 2012.
• Ohio’s wine, wine grape and allied industries generated $75 million in federal taxes and $72 million in state and local taxes in 2016, including more than $6 million in total excise taxes.
The Economic Impact report was commissioned and funded by the Ohio Grape Industries Committee. A copy of the complete report can be found here. The committee was created in 1982 and operates in-part through the Ohio Department of Agriculture, providing marketing and research opportunities to Ohio’s wineries and vineyards. The committee helps increase consumer awareness of Ohio’s modern, high-quality wine industry.
