By TIM THORNBERRY
Kentucky Correspondent FRANKFORT, Ky. — The economy is in a slump; gas prices are starting to creep up, and the calendar is marching into summer. Looks like there will be no vacation again this year, right?
Not necessarily. Kentucky has been on the forefront of introducing the general public to its agricultural sector by way of a partnership between the state’s tourism industry and agriculture entities to create a growing agritourism trade.
It is the “discover-your-own-backyard” idea that is fueling the tourism angle these days and the diversification away from a tobacco economy that has been making farms a vacation destination.
The idea dates back nearly 10 years with the initiation of the Kentucky Agritourism Working Group to discuss ways to improve and promote the viability of a statewide agritourism industry, according to the Kentucky Department of Agriculture (KDA.)
In 2002 the Kentucky General Assembly passed House Bill 654, which created the Office of Agritourism, a collaboration between the KDA and the Kentucky Tourism Department.
Since then a number of farmland destinations have popped up all over the state encompassing everything from blueberries to bourbon not to mention the state’s signature industry, horses.
Stephen Yates, director of the KDA’s Division of Agritourism said the industry is a result of agriculture’s need to diversify.
“As the tobacco industry changed, the writing was on the wall that there was going to be a need to do some alternative agricultural endeavors,” he said. “A lot of things have been tried but one of the things that actually has been done in the Commonwealth for quite a while but didn’t really have a name on it was agritourism; inviting people out to the farm to pick their own fruit, to learn about how things are made like cheese or ice cream, to have a meal, to hold a meeting or to just enjoy being outside.”
Yates said once the agritourism idea took root, farmers began to think of ways they could use their green space in order to stay on the farm.
While the bed-and-breakfast and u-pick operations existed for years, the marketing plan now behind the relatively new industry has spawned countless orchards, vineyards, on-farm restaurants and farmers’ markets introducing those who may have been removed from the farm for a generation or two back to the goodness of value-added products and a quieter way of life.
“There’s some nostalgia there as people remember what it was like when their grandparents took them to the family farm. People like to look at that slower pace after they work all week and it’s a good way to get in touch with their roots,” said Yates. “This is kind of the backdrop to why there is the interest in agritourism. We are very much an agrarian state. If you look at some of the products that Kentucky is famous for whether it’s our Thoroughbred horses or our bourbon or country hams, whatever it may be, they’re all related back to the farm.”
Yates added that with the cost of fuel going up some people may not be thinking of taking that long vacation to the beach or someplace further away, finding a destination close to home - especially a family destination - may be the answer.
One tool the public has at their fingertips is the Farms are Fun website which list hundreds of ag-related venues all across the state.
Back Home Farms located in Green County is one of those destinations that has expanded a generations-old cattle and tobacco farm to include blueberries, blackberries, a greenhouse-nursery with a variety of specialty plants and even limited original artwork upon request.
Denise Morrison handles the tourism side of the farm and said it began with things they knew about.
“We already had the blueberries and we were getting more than we could handle so we thought we’d try a U-pick. Gardening has always been an interest of mine. I studied it most of my life so we thought we’d try that. This year we’re trying U-pick for flowers,” she said.
Morrison also said the farm was including elderberries now, a berry that used to grow wild here and is thought by many to keep the immune system strong. The farm doesn’t have a lot of them, but they are expanding production.
“Since we have good scenery here we thought people from the city would enjoy coming out,” she said. And that they have. The farm also offers sitting areas, Grandma’s Kitchen Goods, Art-in-the-Garden workshops and garden tours just to name a few.
Yates said that agritourism has also been good for local economies as people travel to areas and spend money on such things as food and lodging.
“At its heart, agritourism is tourism just at another location. You’re still going and spending money and that is what tourism is all about. It brings more people to a given community and it all kicks into the local economy,” he said.
Yates noted that agritourism is still in its infancy generating less than one percent of the tourism dollar but with tourism being the number three industry in the state that equates into a significant number; $15 million to $20 million annually and that is a conservative number he said.
For more details, visit www.kentuckyfarmsarefun.com |
