The Raisin Administrative Committee (RAC) has voted unanimously to establish 100 percent free tonnage for the 2011 crop of California Natural Seedless (NTS) raisin crop.

This means that the upcoming crop approaching harvest in the Fresno area will not be subject to volume regulation and a reserve pool will not be created. Growers are currently scheduled to receive a $1,500 per ton field price as was negotiated by the Raisin Bargaining Association in 2010.

This is the second consecutive year without volume regulation for NTS raisins, the predominant variety for the world’s leading producer of dried grapes. The action is a result of the decreased carryover inventory of raisins from past years’ levels. In its meeting on Aug. 15, the carryover inventory was announced at 110,206 natural condition tons. This compares with an average for the past 10 years of 172,515, including a high of over 269,000 tons in 2001.

Other key crop year statistics reviewed by the Committee on included:

Top Destinations for California Natural Seedless Raisins in 2010-2011 were: