FARM AND FOOD TOURISM: EXPLORING OPPORTUNITIES IN THE WESTKynda Curtis, Professor and Extension Specialist, Utah State University

Susan Slocum, Assistant Professor, George Mason University

Objectives

Disseminate best practices in farm and food tourism enterprise development to professionals working with agricultural producers, food producers, and agritourism operators through the development of a curriculum and workshops (5) to be offered in Nevada, Utah, and Idaho

Audience includes Extension educators, tribal staff, Department of Agriculture personnel, NRCS employees, county employees, conservation district staff, FSA personnel and other agribusiness and tourism professionals in Nevada, Utah, and Idaho

End goal is for target audience to work with producers and agritourism operators to implement food tourism enterprises to improve economic sustainability of these enterprises and their communities

What is Food Tourism?

The desire to experience a particular type of food or the products of a specific region… A form of regional development that helps strengthen local

food and beverage production through backward linkages in tourism supply-chain partnerships

Provides new opportunities to promote and distribute local products while providing an enhanced visitor experience through the expression of community identity and cultural distinctiveness

What is Food Tourism?

An expression of culture A form of regional heritage Supports the enhancement of the tourist experience Creates backward linkages in the food supply chain Supports socio-economic growth in rural regions

What is Agritourism/Farm Tourism?

Agritourism is a subsector of food tourism that specializes in the incorporation of visits to farms for the purposes of on-site retail purchases, enjoyment, and education Pick your own Farm-stays Corn mazes Farm tours Farm shops

What is Culinary Tourism?

The practice of exploratory eating, especially those instances in which eating unfamiliar food or participating in new food customs as a way of encountering, learning, or understanding other places and cultures Food/wine trails Cooking schools Farm shop visits Restaurant experiences

Why Farm and Food Tourism?

Agricultural producers face numerous challenges and look to diversify product offerings, access new markets, and expand market periods and pricing

Tourism providers struggle to find the regional distinctiveness necessary to differentiate themselves from other tourism destinations

As a result of the growing local foods movement, farm and food tourism may provide a solution

Farm/food tourism has been shown to…….. Enhance a destination’s tourism offering Generate additional economic opportunities for local growers and processors,

especially in close proximity to prime tourism destinations Provide a venue to promote and distribute local agricultural goods and value-added

products Provide tourists with the cultural experiences they seek

Buy Local Movement

185% increase in farmers’ markets from 2000 to 2014 275% increase in CSA programs from 2004 to 2014 (6,000) 288% increase in food hubs from 2007-2014 (302) The National Grocery Association 2012 Consumer Panel

The availability of local foods was a major influence on grocery shopping decisions as 87.8% of respondents rated local food availability as “very or somewhat important,” with 45.9% indicating “very important”

The need for “more locally grown foods” was the second most desired improvement among surveyed grocery shoppers at 36.6%, just under “price/cost savings”

In 2012, 164K farmers (7.8% of US farms) sold $6.1 billion in local foods

Farmers’ Markets US

Local Food Demand While Traveling

The National Restaurant Association's 2013 Restaurant Industry Forecast reported that 7 of 10 consumers were more likely to visit a restaurant offering locally sourced items

The National Restaurant Association’s 2014 “Top Ten Trends across the Nation,” included locally sourced meats/seafood and locally grown produce as the top 2 trends

The US travel Association reports that 27 million travelers, or 17% of American leisure travelers, engaged in culinary or wine-related activities while traveling within the past three years

Why Farm and Food Tourism?

Food is one of the major tourism activities One-third of tourism expenditures are on food/drink Tourists tend to be less sensitive to food prices Food is considered a “vital” component in the quality of a

tourism experience The product is the basis of food tourism

Tourism Market

Western US a popular tourism destination, prime area for tourism development 20+ national and state parks

Idaho 2013 tourism indicators 30.2 million total visitors Total travel spending: $1.4 billion

Nevada 2012 tourism indicators 52.2 million total visitors 24.6 million state/national park visits Total travel spending: $58.1 billion

Utah’s 2013 tourism indicators 23.5 million total visitors 4.2 million skier visits Total travel spending: $7.5 billion

Why Farm and Food Tourism?

Additional market for current products Diversification into new enterprises/products Reduced transportation/marketing costs Year-round sales (additional sales) Outlet for value-added products Income/employment for family members Cottage food production now option across the West

Why Farm and Food Tourism?

On-farm activities, the visitor comes to you Eliminates the need for transportation Ability to work in a familiar environment More flexibility in scheduling activities Display “show off” products Educate others about local foods Interact with people from around the globe

Extension Program Overview

Five workshops (2014-2015) Utah (2), Nevada (2), and Idaho (1)

Curriculum Full color book, worksheets, and PowerPoint slides

Team Lead

Utah State University Extension – Kynda Curtis, Karin Allen, Paul Hill Susan Slocum (GMU)

Partners University of Nevada, Reno – Carol Bishop University of Idaho – Wilson Gray

Funding provided by WSARE

Needs Assessment

Online survey of small-scale producers in Mountain states, April 2014 Recruited through email lists of Extension, 115 responses

Results overview 62% operation near a tourism destination or direct travel route between

destinations 63% produce vegetables and 44% value added products 26% conduct agritourism activities (farm/ranch tours & farm stands/shops) 80% have revenues from agritourism activities of 20% or less 37% have five year or less industry experience, 26% 6 to 10 years

experience 84% would attend a workshop on implementing agritourism/food tourism

activities

Results

Response Percent

32.2%28.7%10.3%35.6%16.1%35.6%18.4%26.4%33.3%14.9%Other (please specify)

Pick-your-own

Off-site farm shop

Sourcing local restaurants

Tourism processing activities (wine making, cooking

On-farm/ranch tours

On-site farm stand/shop

Bed and breakfast/home stays

Seasonal recreational activities (corn mazes, hunting)

What agritourism/food tourism activities would you implement in the future

Sourcing local hotels or conference centers

Response Percent

26.3%48.4%52.6%31.6%32.6%40.0%20.0%18.9%14.7%5.3%9.5%

Start-up capital financing/funding

Distance/transportation to markets

What would you consider to be the primary hurdles to expanding your agritourism/food tourism operations?

Labor availability

Product quality standards/requirements

Infrastructure/capital investment requirements

Product processing and labeling requirements

Marketing/promotion strategies

Market quantity requirements

Site or location availability

Legal and/or liability issues

Other

Results

Response Percent

67.4%59.8%59.8%67.4%57.6%62.0%35.9%8.7%

Regional agritourism network

Food/drink heritage trail

Agritourism website

State-wide agritourism network

Regional food coop/food hub

Seasonal agritourism newsletter/brochure

Other (please specify)

Would you consider participating in any of the following?

State-wide farm shop network

Response Percent

53.4%55.7%23.9%64.8%43.2%13.6%25.0%31.8%37.5%29.5%62.5%30.7%4.5%Other (please specify)

Tourist preferences and travel patterns

Contracting with distributors/stores

Financing or start-up capital options

Product placement and arrangement

Transportation/distribution options

Marketing/promotional methods and outlets

Service and product pricing

Ordering and inventory management

Legal, liability or insurance

Hiring and managing employees

Processing and labeling value-added products

What types of information or materials would be most helpful to you in planning your agritourism/food tourism operation?Assessing business/economic feasibility

Curriculum Overview

Module 1: Why Farm and Food Tourism? Module 2: Farm and Food Tourism Considerations Module 3: Understanding and Serving the Tourism

Market Module 4: Producing and Marketing Value-Added Foods Module 5: Assessing the Economic Feasibility of New

Enterprises/Products

Program ImpactsTarget Time Frame Targets - Knowledge/Skills/Actions

Estimated # of Participants Verification Methods

Short-TermUnderstand of economic, political, and environmental benefits of implementing food tourism enterprise 100

Pre and post-test and post seminar evaluation

Understand the basic economics of diversification strategies, especially food tourism markets available to producers in the Intermountain West 100

Pre and post-test and post seminar evaluation

Understand the components of evaluating the economic feasibility of food tourism 100

Pre and post-test and post seminar evaluation

Understand tourist and tourism business purchase behaviors, needs, and motivations in relation to purchasing local foods 100

Pre and post-test and post seminar evaluation

Medium-TermCreate plan to introduce seminar curriculum and other SARE resources into producer programming 80 Follow-up evaluation

Work one-on-one with producers/agritoursm operators to evaluate the economic feasibility of food tourism for their operation 60 Follow-up evaluation

Assist producers/agritourism operators in developing a marketing plan that supports tourism promotional messages and strategies 40 Follow-up evaluation

Long-TermAssist producers/agritoursm operators in implementing food tourism strategies for their operation 25

After project - follow up evaluation

Assist producers/agritoursm operators in accessing food tourism networks and distribution channels 25

After project - follow up evaluation

Assist producers/agritoursm operators with the measurement of changes in profitability and economic sustainability of their food tourism diversification strategies 10

After project - follow up evaluation

Evaluation Plan

Retrospective (post-workshop) evaluation See handout Questions based on learning objectives for each chapter

and medium to long-term program impacts 12 month follow-up evaluation (web-based)

To be conducted starting June 2015 2 year follow-up evaluation (web-based)

To be conducted starting June 2016

Outcomes

97 participants over 5 programs Retrospective evaluation results

Ag producers/food producer – 69%, Extension/Agency – 41% workshop helpful/very helpful – 91% Workshop materials to be used in job/operation – 87% Recommend workshop to others – 99% Value of attending more than $500 – 51%

Knowledge/SkillsTo what extent do you understand the following subjects ? Before After (5=A great deal, 4=Considerably, 3=Moderately, 2=Slightly, 1=Not at all) ImprovementThe potential economic, social and environmental benefits of implementing ag/food tourism enterprises 3.03 4.07 34%The activities, products, and events associated with ag/food tourism enterprises 2.97 3.73 25%Benefits and challenges in sourcing restaurants 2.69 3.48 29%Benefits and challenges in sourcing hotels/conference centers 1.95 3.34 71%Assessing the economic feasibility of an ag/food tourism enterprise 2.74 3.67 34%Tourist types and preferences related to ag/food tourism 2.36 3.63 54%Creating cost and return projections (budgets) for a new ag/food tourism enterprise 2.72 3.61 33%Management and resource requirements for establishing an ag/food tourism enterprise 2.56 3.59 40%Tourism promotional methods and outlets 2.58 3.49 36%Estimating demand for a new ag/food tourism enterprise 2.46 3.23 31%Labeling and safety aspects of value-added food production 2.96 3.71 25%Local value-added product processing regulations 2.80 3.67 31%Safety and liability considerations in an ag/food tourism enterprise 2.93 3.72 27%Average Improvement 36%

Average

Future Actions

If you are a farmer/rancher, small food producer, or tourism operator please complete the following.Please indicate your level of agreement with the following statements. (5=Strongly Agree, 4= Moderately Agree, 3=Unsure, 2=Moderately Disagree, 1=Strongly Disagree)

AverageI will create a business plan for a new ag/food tourism 3.92I will create a marketing plan for a new ag/food tourism enterprise that supports tourism promotional strategies 3.65I will develop a production plan for value-added products for my operation 3.57I will develop a safety plan for my operation and/or tourism related products 3.81I will implement an ag/food tourism enterprise in my operation 3.77I will measure the changes in my operations profitability and economic sustainability due to my ag/food tourism diversification strategies3.19

4If you work with agricultural producers and/or small food processors please complete the following.

AverageI will create a plan to introduce the workshop curriculum and other SARE resources into producer programming 3.3I will assist producers in evaluating the economic feasibility of ag/food tourism for their operation 3.4I will assist producers in developing a marketing plan that supports tourism promotional strategies 3.4I will assist producers in implementing ag/food tourism strategies for their operation 3.4I will assist producers in accessing food tourism networks and distribution channels 3.4I will assist producers with the measurement of changes in profitability and economic sustainability of their ag/food tourism diversification strategies3.5

3.4

Conclusions

Met participant objectives (97 vs. 100) Short-term impacts met, level of understanding/skills increased

(from 25 to 75% on average) Mid-term actions look promising (great than 3.4 or better out of

5) Mid- and long-term impacts to be measured Curriculum developed

Book to finalize - professional printing All materials will be posted to USU Extension website

Continue analysis and publication surrounding food tourist data

THANK YOU!