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Vinintell May 2015, Issue 24

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Vinintell May 2015, Issue 24 VININTELL May 2015, Issue 24 COUNTRY PROFILES USA – FLORIDA STATE COUNTRY PROFILES USA Forthcoming profiles of specific states – ● New Jersey • ●Massachusetts • ●●Rhode Island • North Carolina • South Carolina • Virginia Country Profiles is an integral part of the South African wine industry’s business intel- ligence. Based on this, SAWIS has decided to compile, in collaboration with WOSA, a number of country profiles to assist exporters. These profiles cover a wide range of topics, including background to marketing thoughts and topics for strategic, tactical and operational decisionmaking. The comprehensive profile is available on the SAWIS website. CONTENTS 1. INTRODUCTION .......................................................................................................... 3 2. DEMOGRAPHICS ....................................................................................................... 3 3. PEOPLE AND SOCIETY .............................................................................................. 5 4. INFRASTRUCTURE ..................................................................................................... 6 5. ENVIRONMENT ........................................................................................................... 6 6. ECONOMIC SITUATION .............................................................................................. 7 7. AGRICULTURE ............................................................................................................ 7 8. WINE INDUSTRY ......................................................................................................... 8 9. CONSUMERS ........................................................................................................... 10 10. CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................... 15 2 1. INTRODUCTION eastern US. When these were crossed with Vitis rotundifolia, the researchers were able to Florida is a state in the south-eastern corner create disease-resistant grapes without the of the USA bordered to the east by Alabama, thick skin normally associated with robust- Georgia to the north, the Gulf of Mexico to ness. Blanc du Bois, Miss Blanc and Suwa- the west and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. nee are the vines of choice in Florida and Covering 170,000 square km of land be­­ provide a steadily increasing flow of wine for tween latitudes 24°N and 31°N, the region is the millions of tourists who frequent the a similar distance from the Equator as Baja state›s coastal resorts. California in Mexico and the deserts of the Middle East. Although it may seem unlikely Not only does Florida have wineries harvest- that this hot, humid state would be able to ing muscadines and carambolas and creat- support viticulture, Florida does have a bur- ing merlots and sparkling vintages, but there geoning wine industry. are also wineries that specialize in citrus and berry flavours. Various fruit wines are made in Florida’s wine history predates California’s by Florida, from fruits as far ranging as bananas, a number of years: Spanish missionaries blueberries and oranges1. For example, as arrived on the Floridian peninsula in the 16th early as 1991 Florida Orange Groves century and planted vineyards to make sac- Winery began to develop wines made from ramental wines. Despite this long history of 100% tropical fruit. Thanks to their efforts the viticulture, the Florida industry enjoyed little term Florida Wine now encompasses variet- success until a few decades ago. Genera- ies like mango, key lime, orange, grapefruit, tions of Floridians (with the inevitable hiatus blueberry and strawberry. Following in the during Prohibition) had experimented with footsteps of Florida Orange Groves Winery grape varieties in search of vines that would are several other wineries located in Florida thrive in their state’s climate. Vitis vinif- now experimenting with tropical fruits. There era plants proved time and time again that are no designated American Viticultural Areas they were not suited to the hot, humid condi- (AVA) in Florida. tions, succumbing to both Pierce’s disease and fungal problems such as downy mil- dew and black rot. 2. DEMOGRAPHICS 170,304 km2 The Florida Grape Growers Association was Area: established in 1923. In the 1930s, research- Climate: The climate of Florida is tempered ers at the University of Florida helped devel- by the fact that no part of the state is distant op new hybrid grape varieties specifically from the ocean. North of Lake Okeechobee, suited for Florida›s climate, including Stover, the prevalent climate is humid subtropical Blanc Du Bois, Swanee and Miss Blanc after while coastal areas south of the lake (includ- looking into the problem and creating hybrid ing the Florida Keys) have a true tropical cli- varieties from the thick-skinned Musca- mate. Mean high temperatures for late July dine family of grapes native to the south- are primarily in the low 32–34°C. Mean low 3 temperatures for early to mid-January range responsibility over the lakes, rivers, and other from the low 4–7°C in northern Florida to water resources within its jurisdiction. The above 16°C from Miami on southward. With three major uses of the water supply in each an average daily temperature of 21.5°C, it is division are general public use (water for the the warmest state in the country. In the sum- home), commercial/industrial use, and agri- mer, high temperatures in the state seldom cultural irrigation. Florida has a rich variety of exceed 38°C. mineral and forest resources. The two lead- Terrain: Florida is one of the largest states ing mineral products of the state are phos- east of the Mississippi River. Only Alaska and phates and petroleum. Nonfuel mineral pro- Michigan are larger in water area. The water duction in Florida totaled more than US$1.5 boundary is 5.6 km offshore in the Atlantic billion per year in the late 1990s. Phosphates Ocean and 17 km offshore in the Gulf of are minerals that can be ground up and used Mexico. However some places such as as fertilizer. Much of the phosphate mining in Clearwater have promontories that rise 15 to Florida is around Tampa and in Hamilton 30 m above the water. Much of Central and County. Petroleum and natural gas produc- North Florida, typically 40 km or more away tion ranks second behind phosphate mining from the coastline, have rolling hills with ele- in the state. Florida’s forests provide a variety vations ranging from 30 to 76 m. of softwood and hardwood trees. Florida’s Natural resources: Florida’s water resourc- state park system has expanded to one of es and climate contribute a great deal to the the largest and most heavily used systems in state’s overall economic progress. Florida the country. Containing over 242 000 hect- has almost 9 700 km2 of water. These water ares in more than 157 separate units, the resources include 2 105 km2 of coastal state park system today represents a major waters and 7 500 km2 of inland waters. commitment by the State of Florida to the Florida’s water resources support a strong preservation of its scenic resources and pro- fishing industry. The state is divided into five vision of outstanding recreation opportunities water management areas. Each division has for its people. 4 3. PEOPLE AND SOCIETY Table 1: Racial Breakdown of Population2 Number Percent Total population 19,893,297 97.6 White 12,465,029 78.0 Black or African American 2,335,505 14.6 American Indian and Alaska Native 53,541 0.3 Asian 266,256 1.7 Asian Indian 70,740 0.4 Chinese 46,368 0.3 Filipino 54,310 0.3 Japanese 10,897 0.1 Korean 19,139 0.1 Vietnamese 33,190 0.2 Other Asian 31,612 0.2 Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander 8,625 0.1 Native Hawaiian 2,131 0.0 Guamanian or Chamorro 2,319 0.0 Samoan 1,232 0.0 Other Pacific Islander 2,943 0.0 Some other race 477,107 3.0 Two or more races 376,315 2.4 Total population: 19,893,297 (2014 est) the single largest denomination in the state, due in significant part to the state’s large Languages: 73% — English; 20% — Hispanic population. There is also a sizable Spanish; 2% — French Creole; no other Jewish community, located mainly in South language is spoken by more than 1% of the Florida; this is the largest Jewish population state’s population in the South and the third largest in the coun- Religions: In 2010, the three largest denom- try behind New York and California. Florida’s inational groups in Florida were the Catholic current religious affiliations include Protes- Church, the Southern Baptist Convention, tants at 48%, Roman Catholics at 26%, and the United Methodist Church. Florida is Jews at 3%, Jehovah’s Witnesses at 1%, mostly Protestant, but Roman Catholicism is Muslim at 1%, Orthodox at 1%, Buddhists at 5 Figure 1: Age structure (millions, 2013) 0.5% and Hindus at 0.5%. Atheists, deists, Southwest Florida International Airport Palm and other non-religious people compose Beach International Airport Jacksonville Inter- 16% of Flo rida’s population. national Airport. Age structure: (see figure 1) Ports and terminals: Florida’s 15 public Urbanisation: The legal name in Florida for seaports continue to drive Florida’s economy. a city, town or village is “municipality”. In Eleven are container operations. Florida mar- Florida there is no legal difference between itime activities account for approximately towns, villages and cities. In 2012, 75% of 13% of Florida’s Gross Domestic Product the population lived within 16 km of the while contributing US$2.4
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