Meat + Poultry - March 2006 - 62

farms. It can encompass anything
from u-pick orchards to wineries,
from petting zoos to corn mazes.
Agritourism also gives farmers
the opportunity to continue what in
many families is a legacy. In more and
more cases, Eckert says, agritourism
has brought the younger, educated
generation back to the farm. Instead
of working off-site, farmers' children
can use their degrees in marketing
and business, for example, to help
with the agritourism operation.
In addition, many proponents
of agritourism view it as a way to
preserve agricultural land. In Delaware, for example, agritourism is a
viable option to keep small family
farms operating in the face of housing developments, says Amanda
Brown, marketing specialist for the
Delaware Department of Agriculture.

Promoting a culture of
understanding
Tina Reichert and her husband, Matt,
operate Sycamore Valley Farm, a
cow-calf operation combined with a
bed-and-breakfast in north-central
Missouri. The farm attracts visitors
from all over the world, Reichert says.
Sycamore Valley Farm's guests,
like Liberty Hill's guests, are looking
for that authentic, interactive experience, Reichert says. In addition to
learning the ins
and outs of a
cow-calf
operation,
guests are
invited to

help cut, split and stack wood; churn
butter or make homemade soup
during their stay. Reichert says guests
are often very inquisitive.
"They wonder about our grazing operation," she says. "They
wonder about raw milk - is it safe
to drink? They marvel at fresh eggs."
One of her guests, she says, had
never bought any cut of chicken
other than boneless, skinless breasts.
"There's something wrong with
that - there's something wrong
when you're so far removed from
the food chain," she says. "A lot of
people are naïve. They don't know,
realistically, how you raise food."
Leroy Shatto has also encountered this challenge. He and his
family operate Shatto Milk Co., a
small dairy farm located just north of
the Kansas City metropolitan area.
To help customers better understand the dairy industry, the Shattos
offer tours of their processing plant
and bottling facilities. Some guests
are even allowed to feed the baby
calves. Since they began this venture
three years ago, thousands of school
groups and other guests have visited,
sometimes up to 300 to 400 per week.
"There are a lot of people that
don't know what a cow looks like
anymore or that milk comes from a
cow," Shatto says. Shatto Milk Co.
intends to change that.

Clearing up confusion
Kennett's family may operate a bedand-breakfast, but she notes that
they provide guests with more
than just hearty meals and a
warm bed.

Back to the farm
According to the Travel Industry
Association of America, nearly
two-thirds of all U.S. adults have
traveled to a rural destination
within the past three years.
Source: "Agri Tourism Profile" by
Malinda Miller, content specialist for the
Agricultural Marketing Resource Center

If you promote it,
they will come
Agritourism is now a statewide
initiative in many parts of the
country. This chart reflects the
parts of the country that have
benefited from organized
agritourism programs.
ERS
REGION

INCOME IN
MILLIONS

Heartland
Northern Crescent
Northern Great Plains
Prairie Gateway
Eastern Uplands
Southern Seaboard
Fruitful Rim
Basin and Range
Mississippi Portal

$39
$298
$14
$79
$5
$28
$279
$37
$8

Total

$796

Source: "National Survey on Recreation
and the Environment," 2000-2001

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MARCH 2006 FOOD SYSTEMS ınsıder FSI

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