Agritourism 101: What the heck is "agritourism"?

Agritourism 101: what the heck is agritourism anyway?

by Patrick Holladay

Well, first of all “agritourism” is a portmanteau. I know, I know. You’re not reading this for a vocabulary lesson. But a portmanteau is just a word that is made from two existing words. In this case, “agriculture” and “tourism”.

Imagine that the word “agriculture” and the word “tourism” are hurtling towards each other at an earth-shattering speed. When they crash into each other, they blow apart and create a brand new word, “agritourism”. In its most basic sense, agritourism is a way for people with an agribusiness to diversify their revenue by having tourists come visit. You know … make more money!

The Georgia Grown program of the Georgia Department of Agriculture defines agritourism as, “operators, managers, landowners, landlords and tenants in shared tenancies, who is a producer of an agricultural commodity(s) and allow the public to visit the working agricultural operation for the purposes of experiencing, including but not limited to, education, entertainment, relaxation, hospitality, shopping and dining.”

In South Georgia, agritourism can be part of the operations of farmers, ranchers, aquaculture operations or just about any agricultural business that is using tourism as a way to generate additional income. There is also a very important connection between the farmer and the guests that is a direct and familiar interaction for the visitor experience.

There is a bevy of benefits for the agribusinesses that expand into agritourism. Certainly the additional on-farm income is at the top of that list. That said, however, there are plenty more positive benefits from agritourism. These include stewardship of natural resources, understanding of agricultural practices, the importance of smallscale farms, agricultural education, traditions and heritage of a place, understanding where food comes from and the position of the farmer in the supply chain, enhanced food security, an opportunity to experience ruralness, and a way to interest young people in becoming the next generation of farmers and food producers.

Agritourism products run the gamut. It is really up to the farmer’s own creativity and innovation to decide what to share with tourists. Visitors can do farm stays in places like a Bed & Breakfast, go on production tours to see how certain products are made, take self-guided walks, see heritage museums and antique farm tools or tractor collections, participate in classes, demonstrations and workshops, do U-Pick outings to collect local foods like blueberries and strawberries, pet farm animals, go fishing or sit and enjoy themselves in a café or tea room.

And agritourism can do amazing things to revitalize farms and communities. I’ll give you an example from my own work as a tourism researcher and consultant. We won’t stay in Georgia for this one, although much of what I will mention can work in South Georgia too. You’ll remember in September of 2017, Hurricane Maria came barreling up the Caribbean Sea, devastating islands in its wake. One of those was Puerto Rico.

One of the hardest hit areas was a central mountain municipality named Utuado. It took local authorities over a week and a half to begin giving assistance after the hurricane hit this region. It took almost a month and a half for federal authorities like FEMA to arrive and provide assistance to this area. But the people there are very resilient and immediately began rebuilding to be even better than before.

Utuado is an area that is traditionally agricultural with a strong emphasis on coffee farms; coffee does very well in this part of the island. Hurricane Maria crushed the coffee farms but with effort they are coming back. And along with renewed agricultural production is a strong interest in agritourism. For this agritourism destination in Utuado, the main focus will be on a 13-acre demonstration farm and a plant nursery. The land of the demonstration coffee farm also has a coffee roasting facility from the 1960s, which will be rehabilitated to act as an information and tour booking center, heritage museum, and café.

Tourists will be able to tour the renovated coffee roasting facility and see first-hand the equipment that was used to roast coffee in the 1960s and 1970s during the peak of this facility’s production. In the café, visitors can relax, purchase coffee and other beverages as well as locally produced foods, gifts and local handicrafts. Visitors will also be able to book lodging and recreational activities through the information center, which will coordinate offerings with local tourism partners like other nearby farms.

So there you go. This is agritourism in a nutshell. Go ahead, let your inner farmer dance with your inner tourist. Go for an overnight stay at a local farm, a hayride to a pumpkin patch in the Fall or to a U-Pick for a gallon of strawberries. I guarantee is will be good fun and you’ll learn something wonderful about the world of agriculture along the way.

The following is paid advertising by Halyards Restaurant Group:

Our family welcomes yours. Discover our kitchens today.

Visit HalyardRestaurantGroup.com for lunch and dinner hours, directions, and contact information—and ask us about catering your next special event.

Tramici means among friends and this describes our atmosphere perfectly. Inspired Italian cuisine with dining room, bar, and magical outdoor courtyard seating.

912.634.2202 | tramicirestaurant.com

mHalyards offers emorable cuisine, expertly prepared fish, inventive wine and cocktail list, and delightful staff. Formal dining room and extended bar seating.

912.638.9100 | halyardsrestaurant.com

Serving homemade Mexican and Latin American foods with daily specialty margaritas. La Plancha Restaurant sets the clock for the best happy hour on the island.

912.434.6100 | laplancharestaurant.com