Smoke Exposure Research Act of 2023
This bill directs the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) to conduct research relating to smoke exposure and wine grapes. This research must be done in coordination with land-grant colleges and universities that are located in California, Oregon, and Washington and have researched the effects of smoke exposure on viticulture and enology operations and practices.
Specifically, ARS must
- conduct research to identify the compounds responsible for smoke exposure,
- conduct research to establish standard methodologies for sampling and testing smoke-exposed wine grapes and smoke-affected wines,
- establish a reliable database of background levels of smoke exposure compounds that occur naturally in wine grapes,
- develop risk assessment tools or mitigation methods to reduce or eliminate smoke exposure, and
- study compounds that can act as a barrier between wine grapes and smoke compounds.