Louisiana Agritourism: Farm Stays

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Farm Stays

I am just returning from a week in Charleston, S.C. where I attended presentations from around the U.S. on many topics related to agritourism. One of those topics, farm stays, is so perfect for many people in Louisiana.

According to Scottie Jones, one of the founders of Farm Stay U.S., the interest in the rural farm experience is on the rise. Farm stays have been popular in Europe, Australia and New Zealand for years.

According to Smith Travel research, the average lodging rate in the U.S. is $97. Scottie showed us pictures of farms listed on her website: http://www.farmstayus.com/

Scottie and her husband Greg enjoy the supplemental income they receive from being a host and started a website to help others develop their own enterprises.

Scottie is a wealth of information on this topic and is a delight to talk to. Her e-mail is Scottie@FarmstayUS.com

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Agritourism Law Limits Liability

In 2008, the Louisiana Legislature expanded the limitation of liability found in La R.S. 9:2795 et seq to include certain agritourism activities. The legislation authored by Representative Andy Anders and Senators Francis Thompson and Mike Walsworth provides that the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Foresty (LDAF) will develop a set of rules and regulations and that the LSU AgCenter will define a “plan of operation” for an agritourism venture and review those plans.

More about this law can be found on the LSU AgCenter Web site: www.lsuagcenter.com/agritourism

2012 Agriculture Census Shows Increase in Farming

WASHINGTON, May 2, 2014 –There are now 3.2 million farmers operating 2.1 million farms on 914.5 million acres of farmland across the United States, according to the 2012 Census of Agriculture, released today by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

“Once every five years, farmers, ranchers and growers have the unique opportunity to let the world know how U.S. agriculture is changing, what is staying the same, what’s working and what we can do differently,” said Dr. Cynthia Clark, the retiring head of USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, which administered the survey.

Eighty-seven percent of all U.S. farms are operated by families or individuals.
Principal operators were on average 58.3 years old and were predominantly male; second operators were slightly younger and most likely to be female; and third operators were younger still.
In Louisiana agritourism grew from 170 farms in 2007 to 361 farms in 2012.
In Louisiana onfarm agritourism sales jumped from $2,486 to $8,996 in 2012.
In Louisiana the definition of agritourism is broader than the definition in the census; meaning that numbers are greater.