RAISIN INDUSTRY, The American, is confined almost wholly to California. The raisin crop comes from the great San Joaquin Valley and from several counties in southern California. The California raisin grape culture began to be of commercial importance in 1874, when the output was 9,000 boxes, or 180,000 pounds of raisins. The industry advanced thy leaps and up to 1894, when the crop amounted to 103,000,000 pounds. The markets under this great output, and the crop sold for less than two cents per pound. As a result there was a sharp decline both in the acreage and in the output of raisins during the next four or five years. However, the growers protected themselves and their market by form ing, in 1898, a Raisin Growers' Association, which controlled about 90 per cent of the yield. It had under contract in 1917, 155,000 acres of grapes. This association still continues to handle the bulk of the raisin crop, and has been quite successful in distributing to the best ad vantage the large output in the different mar kets. As a result the California raisin indus try has had a phenomenal growth. It prospered because of the war since raisins are such a con venient and satisfactory fruit for shipping. Nearly all the raisins of the United States come from 11 counties of California. and 60 per cent of the product is from Fresno. The California product of raisins was : 1913, 130, 000,000 pounds; 1914, 182,000,000 pounds; 1915, 256,000,000 pounds; 1916, 264,000,000 pounds.
Of the .1916 product 178,000,000 pounds were Muscats, and 47000,000 Thompson's Seedless. U Before 1896 the States was a large im porter of raisins. From 1887 to 1891 the aver age importation was 38,500,000 pounds; from 1892 to 18% the average was 17,746,000 pounds; it is now negligible, and a large export trade is developing. In 1914 the exports were 14,766, 000 pounds of the value of $998,000; in 1915 the export was 24,895,000 pounds valued at $1,719,000; and in 1916, 75,014 pounds, of the value of $5,407,000. The raisins are packed and
graded into layers, and one, two and three crown loose. The processes of curing, seeding and packing raisins have been improved from time to time, and to-day machines do much of the work formerly done by hand. The first great device was a patent seeder, and the latest one is a raisin-packing machine, by which the packages, or cartons, are filled, weighed and sealed.
The leading varieties of grapes used for raisins are the Muscat and Thompson's Seedless. Grapes are ripe by the middle of Ausrust, and the season often lasts into November. The average time of drying and curing a tray of raisins is about three weeks, all depending on the weather. The earliest picked grapes dry in 10 days, and the later ones often take four weeks and even more. The method of drying is very simple. The bunches are.cut from the vines and placed oh shallow trays two feet wide, three feet long, and one inch high, on which the grapes are allowed to sun-dry, being turned from time to time by simply placing an empty tray too side down on the full one, then turning both over, and taking off the top tray. After the raisins are dried they are stored away in the sweat boxes until they are packed and prepared for shipment. Some of the larger growers, in order not lo run so much rislc drying on account of rain, and also to enable them to handle the crop fast enough: have cur-' ing houses, where the curing is finished after having been partially done outside. The seed ing, grading, packing and shipping have be come separate branches.