I knew it was going to be a difficult task to find a local sustainability initiative in my home community because, Ellijay being such a small town, there isn’t an appreciable amount of information available. So when agritourism, the practice of touring agricultural areas to see farms and often to participate in farm activities, was mentioned I knew what I would write about (Agritourism). Being from Ellijay I automatically assume that people know about it, but from my experience here at Berry not a great deal of people do. When the term agritourism is heard, small town Ellijay, Ga doesn’t usually come to mind; however, each year the Apple Festival brings thousands of people from all over, and despite the locals complaining about the mass amount
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Obviously education is the number one benefit, but agritourism has a lot more to offer. Preserving farms and farmlands ranked first in the environmental benefits of agritourism in a study performed by North Carolina State University on a group of farmers and residents (“How Beneficial”). Coming in behind that, by a small origin, is providing quality local products and produce and preserving natural resources and ecosystems (“How Beneficial”). Although the data came from a study done in North Carolina, the data doesn’t change in Georgia. Farmers have a desire to educate the public about their job and the importance of what they do. Without agritourism the world would be a great deal more clueless about their food, and most importantly, how food can be provided if need be. Generally people have always wanted to know where their food comes from, and agritourism gives people the opportunity to learn exactly that. Obviously, not every individual cares where their food comes from; however, regardless of whether they care or not, it isn’t a horrible thing to know. Nobody is really losing in this situation. The environmental benefits are obvious. I am not going to spend a lot of time explaining what can be easily determined from a little thinking. Economical benefits directly relate to the farms and orchards. During the off season, farm families need to provide an income for their staff and their own families. Educating the population is actually more important than an increase in revenue. The operators and farmers care more that people are educated in agriculture and sustaining the environment with natural ways of growing produce than how much money is going into their pockets annually. A study by the University of Georgia revealed that Georgia agritourism generated $194 million in revenue; agritourism also created 5,200 jobs and made a $351 million economic impact (“Where Farming Meets Fun”). That is a huge economic
Obviously education is the number one benefit, but agritourism has a lot more to offer. Preserving farms and farmlands ranked first in the environmental benefits of agritourism in a study performed by North Carolina State University on a group of farmers and residents (“How Beneficial”). Coming in behind that, by a small origin, is providing quality local products and produce and preserving natural resources and ecosystems (“How Beneficial”). Although the data came from a study done in North Carolina, the data doesn’t change in Georgia. Farmers have a desire to educate the public about their job and the importance of what they do. Without agritourism the world would be a great deal more clueless about their food, and most importantly, how food can be provided if need be. Generally people have always wanted to know where their food comes from, and agritourism gives people the opportunity to learn exactly that. Obviously, not every individual cares where their food comes from; however, regardless of whether they care or not, it isn’t a horrible thing to know. Nobody is really losing in this situation. The environmental benefits are obvious. I am not going to spend a lot of time explaining what can be easily determined from a little thinking. Economical benefits directly relate to the farms and orchards. During the off season, farm families need to provide an income for their staff and their own families. Educating the population is actually more important than an increase in revenue. The operators and farmers care more that people are educated in agriculture and sustaining the environment with natural ways of growing produce than how much money is going into their pockets annually. A study by the University of Georgia revealed that Georgia agritourism generated $194 million in revenue; agritourism also created 5,200 jobs and made a $351 million economic impact (“Where Farming Meets Fun”). That is a huge economic