By Oregon Family Farm Association,
Despite a reduction in visitors to wineries and a decline in tourism spending, the Oregon wine industry continues to play a significant role in the state’s economy to the tune of $8.2 billion, according to a report by the Economic Forensics and Analytics Inc. of Petaluma, Calif. The pandemic curbed tourism and wildfire smoke tainted grapes, dealing blows to the industry, but from 2019 to 2022, the industry experienced a 12.8 percent gain, the Portland Business Journal reported. However, that number lagged behind the 14.5 percent inflation rate. During that same time period, the number of winery visitors dropped from 11,397 in 2019 to 7,318 in 2022. Since 2013, winery-related tourism spending has jumped from $208 million to $894 million in 2019, even though it dropped by 15.1 percent to $787 million in 2022.
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