TheUS state ofWashington is a leadingagricultural producer.
(The following figures are from the Washington State Office of Financial Management[1] and theUSDA,National Agricultural Statistics Service,Washington Field Office). For 2003, the total value of Washington's agricultural products was $5.79 billion, the 11th highest in the country. The total value of its crops was $3.8 billion, the 7th highest. The total value of its livestock and specialty products was $1.5 billion, the 26th highest. In 2010, the total value of the crops was $7.93 billion.[2]
In 2004, Washington ranked first in the nation in production of redraspberries (90.0% of totalU.S. production), wrinkled seedpeas (80.6%),hops (75.0%),spearmint oil (73.6%),apples (58.1%), sweetcherries (47.3%),pears (42.6%),peppermint oil (40.3%),Concord grapes (39.3%),carrots for processing (36.8%), andNiagara grapes (31.6%). Washington also ranked second in the nation in production oflentils, fallpotatoes, dry edible peas,apricots,grapes (all varieties taken together),asparagus (over a third of the nation's production),sweet corn for processing, and green peas for processing; third in tartcherries,prunes andplums, and dry summeronions; fourth inbarley andtrout; and fifth inwheat,cranberries, andstrawberries.
The apple industry is of particular importance to Washington. Because of the favorable climate of dry, warm summers and cold winters ofCentral Washington, the state has led the U.S. in apple production since the 1920s.[3] Two areas inEastern Washington – theYakima River valley and theWenatchee River valley – account for the vast majority of the state's apple crop.[4] TheWashington Apple Commission regulates the industry.
Cannabis in Washington relates to a number of legislative, legal, and cultural events surrounding the use ofcannabis (marijuana,[a]hashish,THC,kief, etc.). On December 6, 2012,Washington became the first U.S. state tolegalize recreational use of marijuana and the first to allow recreational marijuana sales, alongsideColorado.[b] The state had previouslylegalized medical marijuana in 1998. Under state law, cannabis is legal for medical purposes and for any purpose by adults over 21.
Hemp in theU.S. state ofWashington has emerged as an experimental crop in the 21st century.
Washington is a major wheat producer with 90% of production exported. This means that the health of the industry is largely dependent on global market conditions.[9]
Washington wine is awine produced fromgrape varieties grown in the U.S. state ofWashington. Washington ranks thirdin the United States in the production of wine, behindCalifornia andNew York.[10] By 2017, the state had over 55 thousand acres (220 square kilometres) ofvineyards, aharvest of 229 thousand short tons (208 thousand tonnes) of grapes, and exports going to over 40 countries around the world from the 940+wineries located in the state.[11] While there are someviticultural activities in the cooler, wetterwestern half of the state, the majority (99.9%) of wine grape production takes place in theshrub-steppeeastern half.[12] Therain shadow of theCascade Range leaves theColumbia River Basin with around 8 inches (20 cm) of annual rain fall, makingirrigation andwater rights of paramount interest to the Washington wine industry. Viticulture in the state is also influenced by longsunlight hours (on average, two more hours a day than inCalifornia during thegrowing season) and consistent temperatures.[13]
The early history of the Washington wine industry can be traced to the introduction ofCinsault grapes by Italian immigrants to theWalla Walla region. Grapes are not indigenous to the Columbia Valley viticultural area, but bothVinifera andLabruscavines are grown. The oldest planted Vinifera vines still in existence were planted byGerman immigrants in theTampico vicinity, west ofUnion Gap, in 1871.[14] Others were planted in the Kennewick area in 1895, and in the Walla Walla area by 1899.[15] Planting of premium Vinifera grapes began in the Columbia Valley in the mid-1960s. By 1981 there were over 6,610 acres (2,675 ha) of Vinifera grapes including 2,700 acres (1,093 ha) of cultivated vineyards. In the 1950s and 1960s, the precursors of the state's biggest wineries (Chateau Ste. Michelle andColumbia Winery) were founded. Throughout the rest of the 20th century, the wine world discovered a new aspect of Washington wines with each passing decade – starting withRieslings andChardonnays in the 1970s, theMerlot craze of the 1980s and the emergence ofCabernet Sauvignon andSyrah in the 1990s.[13] Washington has twenty federally definedAmerican Viticultural Area (AVA)s with all but one located inEastern Washington.[16] The largest is theColumbia Valley AVA, which extends into a small portion of northernOregon and encompasses most of the states's AVAs. They areLewis-Clark Valley AVA, theAncient Lakes AVA,Walla Walla Valley AVA, which encompasses Oregon'sThe Rocks District of Milton-Freewater AVA,Horse Heaven Hills AVA, theWahluke Slope AVA,Lake Chelan AVA,Naches Heights AVA, and theYakima Valley AVA, which in turn also encompasses theRattlesnake Hills AVA,Snipes Mountain AVA, theRed Mountain AVA,Goose Gap AVA and theCandy Mountain AVA. TheColumbia Gorge AVA is west of the Columbia Valley AVA. As of 2023, Washington's only AVA located west of the Cascades is thePuget Sound AVA[12] and a petition has been submitted toAlcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) proposing a newAmerican Viticultural Area named "Mount St. Helens" covering parts ofClark County,Cowlitz County, Skamania County andLewis County.[17][18][19]
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