The Fresno-based California Table Grape Commission will focus on the health benefits of the Golden State’s table grapes as it launches its 2024-25 global marketing campaign, said Kathleen Nave, commission president.
The campaign, designed to drive demand for California table grapes, will target the U.S. and 21 export markets.
“Consumer research conducted in 2023 in the U.S. and 12 export markets showed that, in all markets, grape purchasers were motivated to purchase fresh grapes by knowing grapes have health benefits,” Nave said. “Therefore, health messaging is a key component of the marketing campaign, and a new campaign focused on healthy snacking will launch with the new season.”
The commission is celebrating 25 years of its grape and health research program this year.
“Findings from the research program have shown that regular grape consumption is beneficial to heart, brain, skin, colon and immune health,” she said.
Findings have been published in peer-reviewed journals such as Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, Journal of Cancer Management and Research and Journal of Nutrition Research.
A study published in 2023 in scientific journal Food & Function that looked at the impact of regular grape consumption on biomarkers for eye health found that eating grapes for 16 weeks improved key markers for eye health in older adults, she said.
And a study published in 2023 in the Nature journal Scientific Reports investigated the potential for grapes to “modulate the human microbiome,” and found that grape consumption could subtly change the chemicals produced in the gut microbiome, which has potential health benefits, Nave said.
“Grapes contain over 1,600 different phytochemicals, offering the potential for much more curiosity and research,” she said. “A curiosity that could even extend research to investigate the effects of grape consumption on individuals experiencing microgravity environments, which does in fact include space travelers but also those more terrestrially bound.”
