Louisiana Agritourism: USA Today Lists Farm Haycations

Thursday, May 19, 2011

USA Today Lists Farm Haycations

Larry Bleiberg from USA TODAY wrote in his May 13, 2011 column about "10 Great Places for a Rural Haycation." Larry encourages people to consider a farm vacation over the annual trip to the beach. He highlights things to do at each destination and provides contact information.

If you have considered opening your farm or ranch to visitors for overnight stays this is a must read for you. The Farm Stay US group would be happy list your property and it can also be listed on MarketMaker. These are two great marketing resources to get the word out that you are open for business.

Not sure, if this is for you? Experiment by inviting someone for an overnight stay. If you and your family enjoy sharing your agriculture knowledge and hospitality this could be a new avenue for supplemental income.

Want to learn more about how to set up a farmstay? Read the farm stay manual from Minnesota that was done in collaboration with the Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture, Renewing the Countryside, and the University of Minnesota Tourism Center.

No comments:

Post a Comment

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.