Speakers tout ‘agritourism’

Local farmers and tour operators spoke about the potential for increased agricultural tourism in the Valley during a Mat-Su Convention and Visitors Bureau luncheon Friday afternoon at Glacier Canyon Grill.

Janet Dinwiddie of Pyrah’s Pioneer Peak Farm and Jean Havemeister of Havemeister Dairy Farm were joined on the panel by Laura Welsh of Premier Alaska Tours and Roberta Warner of Royal Celebrity Tours. Kristi Krueger of the state Division of Agriculture also spoke about the potential farmers have in courting tourists and group tours.

“The feedback we’ve got from visitors is that it was one of their favorite stops during their vacation, and I’d love to see more coordination with the farmers in our area to make it happen more frequently,” Dinwiddie told the audience, which included Mat-Su Borough Assemblyman Warren Keough and Mat-Su Borough Mayor Larry DeVilbiss.

Dinwiddie and Havemeister shared their experiences with bringing tours to their farms and some of the challenges they have faced. Welsh said that visitors to Alaska are changing in that they want more interaction during their vacation, and that’s a good thing for agricultural tour operators.

“More than just being talked to on a tour bus, visitors want to experience a destination and actually do some of the things they are learning about,” Welsh said. “At the dairy farm, they want to touch the cows and actually milk a cow instead of just being told how it’s done. For farmers, this is an opportunity to give visitors a hands-on experience.”

At tour operator conventions attended by the Mat-Su CVB in recent years, agricultural tourism is definitely a trend. It’s also something that goes beyond the farm, as it lends to culinary tourism as well. It’s part of the “experience” Welsh spoke of on Friday. When visiting a destination, visitors want to be immersed in the experience, and Alaska Grown product allows visitors to extend their Last Frontier experience to the dinner table. Not only can they sample farm-fresh vegetables, but also Alaska-made birch syrup treats, locally brewed beer and vodkas, Alaska-raised beef and more.

Touring the Valley’s farms and enjoying Alaska Grown meals isn’t just for visitors. Krueger and the Division of Agriculture put together a one-day tour each year, and the response has been amazing. It shows there is interest in agricultural tourism not only with visitors, but residents as well, and the opportunity for a private business owner to develop such a tour exists.

“We started out with one bus, then we’ve had to add a second bus because of the popularity,” Krueger told the audience. “But it’s not something the Division of Ag can’t do it all the time.”

Palmer farms are situated in a location that makes them ideal “add-ons” for existing tours that come from Anchorage to the Valley, en route to Talkeetna or Denali National Park. Developing relationships between farmers and tour operators is the key, and that was the focus at Friday’s event.

“We need to know what you guys are doing, what new products you have, what new things you are offering,” Welsh told Havemeister and Dinwiddie. “We’d love to bring more people out to the Mat-Su and to local farms.”

Casey Ressler (casey@alaskavisit.com) is marketing and communications manager for Mat-Su CVB.