Agritourism: Another Vision for Iowa

According to Purdue University research, nature-/agricultural-based tourism is the fastest growing sector of the U.S. tourism industry, averaging a 30 percent increase since 1997. From farmhouse bed-and-breakfast operations to winery tours, specialized product sales and Halloween attractions, farmers are taking a chance on tourism and it is paying off.

According to the Iowa State Extension, "agritourism is a growing segment of the rural economy in many areas of Iowa." Iowa agritourism includes farm-based bed and breakfasts, Christmas tree farms, markets, fruit and vegetable u-picks, hiking for a fee, hunting/fishing for a fee, mazes for a fee, wineries and more. An issue is as this type of tourism increases, will more farms go organic in part for the safety of their visitors and for the growing demand for organic, locally-grown products?

Ethical Shopper provides some clues:

The growing interest in organic foods, local farms, and farmers’ markets has led a growing number of people to these functioning farms. "It’s grown because more farmers are finding out it’s an important avenue to bring in revenue and stay on the farm" said Rich Pirog, associate director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University. " Secondarily, it’s increasing because we’ve moved to an experience economy. People want to have a farm experience.”

As I reported in an earlier blog, small farms are growing rapidly in Iowa and agritourism may be a way for the small, family farm to stay a small, family farm.

Iowa State is sponsoring a conference on the subject on March 7th called "Visit Iowa Farms - Becoming a Destination!" the 2009 Visit Iowa Farms Conference at Honey Creek Resort at Lake Rathbun, Iowa.

Blog for Iowa has more archived from last year's event.

More Farms, Less Farmland According to Ag Census

The latest National Agricultural Census Service census shows small-scale farming operations are making a comeback. The number of farms nationwide has increased 4 percent from 2.1 million farms to 2.2 million as farms have become more diverse in ownership and in offerings. At the same time however, U.S. acres used for farmland in 2007 totaled 922 million acres. This is down 16 million acres from 2002 (a 2% drop).

The NASS census shows that Iowa farms continue to expand as an agricultural state with 2,201 new farms started between 2002 to 2007. However, the total amount of acreage for farming in Iowa has declined by just under 982,000 acres, a 3% drop, since 2002.

Overall in the U.S., The number of farms reporting sales of $1,000 or less was up significantly, to 688,833 in 2007 from 570,919 in 2002, according to the count released earlier this month which may reflect the growing demand for locally produced foods. Nearly 300,000 new farms have begun operation since the last census in 2002. New farms, which make up 13% of all farms tend to be smaller, with the average size being 201 acres or less than half the size of older farms. The produce sold tends to be half the value of older farms as only 1/3 of new farm producers farm as their primary vocation. In Iowa farms with sales of less than $2,500 have grown from 23,436 in 2002 to 26,730 in 2007, an increase of 12%.

Also growing nationally are the number of farms with annual sales of $500,000 or more which now number 46,000. In Iowa, there mega-farms almost doubled between 2002-2007 with an increase of 4,714 farms (or 10% of all growth).

Falling are family and small farms with sales between $9,999 and $499,999. In Iowa, there were 63,195 farms in 2002, in 2007 there were 47,563, a decline of 25%.

The struggle between the expanding urban areas of Iowa, corporate farmers, and family operations will continue into the future as locally-grown agriculture concerns and national economic agendas faceoff in the marketplace, especially as the need for green energy is flagged as a driver for aiding the ailing economy.

Locally-Grown Growers Growing

According to the Cedar Rapids Gazette:

The number of small Iowa farms selling directly to consumers increased to 2,987 in the 2007 count, up from 2,455 in the last Census of Agriculture in 2002.

Farms harvesting vegetables for sale climbed 17.2 percent over the five-year period, to 881.

The number of farms with fruit trees, nuts and berries increased 78 percent to 735. They generated $7.4 million in sales, up from $4.5 million in 2002.

But the biggest gain in local produce was in grape production. The number of growers increased more than twofold, from 133 to 335. Grape acreage increased more than fourfold to 797 acres.

“The census illustrates the increased interest statewide in locally grown produce,” Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey said in a prepared statement. He praised specialty crops, saying they help farmers diversify their production while diversifying the state economy. Northey said growth in the state’s wine industry helped boost Iowa’s agricultural tourism, which grew more than threefold to $12.7 million.

Nursery, greenhouse, floral and sod operations also grew at a strong pace, with sales climbing from $77.6 million to $93.8 million. The amount of growing space protected from the elements in hothouses or greenhouses grew to 7.3 million square feet from just more than 5 million square feet.

The number of farms growing greenhouse vegetables and fresh-cut herbs more than doubled, to 106, reaching over $7.5 million in sales. Ninety Iowa greenhouses grew tomatoes, generating almost $1.7 million in sales.