Regulatory Cost of Production in Napa County Vineyards
CALPOLY REGULATORY STUDY
New Study Finds Napa Wine Grape Growers Face Up to $1,700 Per Acre in Regulatory Costs
For the first time, wine grape growers in Napa County can put a financial number to the burdensome regulations they face every year. Researchers from California Polytechnic State University – San Luis Obispo have released in March a new study on agriculture regulations for wine grape production. The research is similar in scope to other studies the researchers conducted in California that show regulatory costs have increased over 1,300% on some agricultural operations over the last 20 years.
Supported by the Napa County Farm Bureau, the academic research analyzes the cost of regulatory compliance (annually) for large and small growers in Napa County. The findings are dramatic, showing over $1,700 per acre for large growers and over $1,100 per acre for small growers in Napa, equating to just under $2,000,000 in regulatory costs for the large grower and approximately $226,000 for the small grower included in the study. All of the costs were required as part of the production process as of 2025, but do not include new compliance costs that will be implemented in 2026, such as groundwater fees.
“Our members have said continually that regulation is driving them out of business,” said Peter Rumble, CEO of the Napa County Farm Bureau, “so we expected the findings would not be good. But this is shocking. It shows how much work we need to do at the federal, state, and local level to support agriculture. Without change, we might not have viable agriculture as we know it now in Napa, which threatens the Ag Preserve, something that defines us in many ways.”
The report notes the cost of regulatory compliance for Napa County wine grape growers is significant, with wine grapes appearing to be among those with higher regulatory costs relative to production costs in the state – and twice as high as similar crops in Oregon. The report also notes that given the recent downturn in wine consumption and current oversupply of wine, profit margins are already shrinking beyond the point of maintaining viability in wine grape farming.
“Our study showed that regulatory costs comprise between 8 to 12 percent of production costs – which makes a big difference in profitability,” notes Lynn Hamilton, agribusiness professor at Cal Poly, who completed the study along with fellow Cal Poly agribusiness professor Michael McCullough. “Both growers and policy makers need to understand the impact of regulatory costs on the viability of farming, because these costs are usually missing from production planning budgets.”
Rumble noted, “While we need to work with our local elected officials on protecting agriculture, there is significant work to do at the State and Federal levels to bring relief to our farmers.” Natalie Collines, President, California Association of Winegrape Growers, agreed. ““These findings put numbers to a reality California growers have faced for years. Regulatory compliance continues to account for an increasing share of the costs farmer’s bear. California can lead on environmental protection and worker safety while supporting viable family farms, but achieving that balance requires policymakers who understand the real-world impact on growers and their operations. CAWG thanks the Napa County Farm Bureau for its leadership on this effort and is committed to using this baseline data to advocate for smarter, more balanced regulatory frameworks for California growers.”
Johnnie White, Jr., a member of the Napa County Farm Bureau Board, California Farm Bureau Board, and California Association of Winegrape Growers Board, shared his personal perspective of the study. “Our family has been farming in Napa County for six generations and the hope is we’ll continue farming for several more. The sustainability of farming is in serious question because of these regulatory costs. The study provides excellent examples of the regulations harming wine grape growers. If we continue down the current regulatory path, we will find grape growing and farming in Napa County will no longer be sustainable.”
The complete report is available through California Polytechnic State University’s free Digital Commons library https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/ as well as on the Napa County Farm Bureau’s website https://www.napafarmbureau.org/.
The researchers are already working on two additional reports related to Napa agriculture, documenting the regulatory cost of wine production as well as the regulatory cost of starting a new vineyard. These two reports will be completed in Spring and Summer of 2026.
Read the full report here >