Conferences
Developing an Agritourism Business Plan with the AgPlan Online Software
Katie Wilts Johnson
Summary
Small and beginning farms and farms looking to diversify their operation often search for creative ways to add revenue. Agritourism is one option of additional revenue. Agritourism can entail many different business types, including on-farm education such as farm tours, hospitality such as farm stays, outdoor recreation such as hunting, entertainment such as wedding venues, and direct sales such as u-pick operations. While agritourism provides additional revenue, it also introduces additional marketing, legal, and human resource risks. Farms can minimize these risks by preparing a detailed business plan. The Center for Farm Financial Management (CFFM), in conjunction with University of Vermont, Clemenson University, University of California, and American Indian Alaskan Native Tourism Associate created an agritourism-specific business planning template through AgPlan, an online business planning software. The template assists farms in considering the many aspects of creating and expanding an agritourism business. It also encourages interaction between farms and educators, farm consultants, or other stakeholders throughout the business planning process. CFFM also created a free, customizable agritourism business planning curriculum to complement the AgPlan template. The curriculum includes PowerPoint slides with presenter notes, sample business plans, and activity ideas to make business planning trainings interactive. During this presentation, educators will learn about the importance of business planning for agritourism enterprises, explore the AgPlan agritourism template, and will view and gain access to the AgPlan agritourism business planning curriculum. Attendees will leave this presentation with the tools to assist farms with agritourism business planning in both group settings and personalized consultations.
Details
| Conference | 2025 Extension Risk Management Education National Conference |
| Presentation Type | 30-minute Concurrent |