Jess Jackson drops down on Forbes' richest list

A billion dollars just isn’t what it used to be.

Sonoma County wine entrepreneur Jess Jackson fell 121 spots on Forbes magazine’s annual list of the world’s richest people.

Forbes estimated the founder of the Kendall-Jackson wine empire is worth an estimated $2.2 billion, unchanged from last year.

But Jackson sank to No. 553 on the Forbes list, down from No. 432 a year ago. He was the only Sonoma County resident to make the list.

Another wine industry powerhouse, the family of Ernest Gallo, dropped off the list this year. Gallo, who died in March 2007, was worth an estimated $1.3 billion last year, placing the Modesto family at No. 754 on the 2007 list.

Overall, there are a record 1,125 billionaires in the world, up from 946 last year, Forbes reported Wednesday. The total net worth of the group is $4.4 trillion, up $900 billion from a year ago.

Investor Warren Buffett is the richest man on the planet, worth an estimated $62 billion. He displaced Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, who was the richest man in the world for 13 straight years.

Gates is worth $58 billion, good enough for third on the list. Mexican telecom tycoon Carlos Slim Helú is the world’s second-richest man, with an estimated net worth of $60 billion.