Promoting Agritourism: Collaborative Efforts at the Local Level and Beyond

	Speakers:
	Eric Barrett Agriculture Extension Agent, Office Chairpersons Ohio State University Extension		Rob Leeds Agriculture Extension Agent, Office Chairpersons Ohio State University Extension
	Mark Mechling Agriculture Extension Agent, Office Chairpersons Ohio State University Extension		Mike Hogan Agriculture Extension Agent, Office Chairpersons Ohio State University Extension
	Description: Agritourism is the newest and hottest product in the tourism industry. Farms and ranches are of great interest to travelers, and tour promoters want to help send tourists to these destinations! But, sometimes it's difficult to find these farm and ranch destinations because of limited marketing and promotional dollars. And, some local travel promoters do not understand agritourism along with the possibilities for their communities with the increased traffic due to successful agritourism operations. This session will help participants understand the Agritourism industry and ways to team up to promote their areas. What is agritourism: We will introduce participants to the thousands of ways farmers and ranchers are attracting guests and economic stability to their farms and ranches. From pumpkins and corn mazes to weddings and wineries, there are many options for economic success! Collaborations: We will give an overview of estimated economic impacts of attracting guests to rural areas and how this can be a large tourism draw for communities. We will show how some farmers/ranchers are working with local tourism professionals to help attract guests to their farms/ranches. Funding opportunities: Agritourism is a form of sustainable agriculture. There are many possibilities for grants and other ideas to help increase marketing and promotional budgets for farmers/ranchers as well as their local communities. Idea generation: Participants will help brainstorm ideas to connect farmers with economic development professionals, tourism professionals and others to attract dollars to help promote their operations and their communities. Our presentation will feature humor and wit from our work with direct marketing activities in Ohio agriculture. Our power-point presentation will feature pictures from Ohio farms and will help participants see what is happening in this new industry. Handouts with resource information will give participants a direction for their interest in agritourism to take home.