Transition on Grape Production in Okayama prefecture

In this paper, we aim to explain the history and areal distribution of grape production in Okayama prefecture with the special attention to the main kinds of grapes. Although Muscat cultivation in glasshouse was already been introduced in the 19th century, grape production had remarkably increased up to mid-20th century. After various kinds of grapes such as Neo-Muscat and Campbell Early have been cultivated, it has come to concentrate on the production of Pioniere in Okayama prefecture. The cultivated area of grapes is, however, decreasing gradually due to aging in the farm labor force and the lack of agricultural successors. In the light of the investigations, this research subsequently stated the outline and the transition of the grape production with the exsisting statistical materials etc.