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California AgTour Connections
UC Agritourism News & Notes
November 2015
In This Issue
Agritourism Intensive classes
Guide to regional marketing
Small Farm Conference scholarships
New projects starting
CalAgTour.org directory
Useful resources
Quick Links

I hope you got some rain, and at the right time.

We've been working with many of you to plan Agritourism Intensive classes - coming up very soon - in Quincy, Modesto and Redding. Please check them out if you are considering or expanding agritourism on your place, or share the news with others who might be interested. It would be great to meet you.

We just published an online guide to regional agricultural marketing, based on interviews with many of you. Thanks!! The California Small Farm Conference will be in Sacramento in March, 2016; scholarship applications are due soon. And we're thrilled to be partnering with FarmsReach and many others to soon offer more connections, promotion and online education for California agritourism, thanks to funding from the USDA Farmers' Market Promotion Program.

Have a wonderful fall, and please stay in touch.
Sincerely,
 
Penny Leff, Agritourism Coordinator
UC Small Farm Program
530-752-7779  
"Agritourism Intensive" classes starting soon   
in Quincy, Modesto & Redding

toddler with pumpkin kids with strawberriesHorse-drawn hay ride at Full Belly Farm Hoes Down Harvest Festival
Are you considering agritourism or nature tourism on your farm or ranch?
Would you like to build your agritourism or nature tourism business?
                          
This class is for you!
  • Local agritourism operators will share their own experiences and will be part of a supportive network of advisors as class participants plan and start new enterprises.
  • Participants will learn from experts in business planning, regulatory compliance, risk management, hospitality and cost-effective marketing, including social media.
  • The hands-on, interactive activities will guide participants as they assess their own farms or ranches for agritourism potential and start their own business, risk management and marketing plans.
  • Each participant will receive a free copy of the extensive handbook, "Agritourism and Nature Tourism in California", which will be used as a text for the class.
Registration for all locations is open - Sign up today - All registrants are expected to participate in all three sessions at one location

Plumas/Sierra class registration:  http://ucanr.edu/agtourplumas15
      Dates:    Tuesdays, Dec 1, 2015, Jan 12, 2016 and Feb 23, 2016
      Times:    9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. each session (lunch provided)
      Location: Mineral Building, Plumas County Fairgrounds, Quincy, CA 95071
      Cost:       $50 for 3-session course ($20 for additional participants from same
                     family/business)

Stanislaus County class registration: http://ucanr.edu/agtourmodesto2015
       Dates:     Thursdays, Dec 10, 2015, Jan 21, 2016 and Feb 11, 2016
      Times:     8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. each session (lunch provided)
      Location: Harvest Hall, 3800 Cornucopia Way, Modesto, CA 95358
      Cost:       $50 for 3-session course

Shasta County class registration: http://ucanr.edu/agtourshasta2015
Dates:     Wednesdays, January 6, February 10 and March 16, 2016
Times:      8:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. each session (lunch provided)
Location: The Lema Ranch, 800 Shasta View Drive, Redding, CA 96003
Cost:       $50 for 3-session course ($25 for additional participants from same
               family/business)

Information about all classes: Penny Leff, UC Small Farm Program, 530-752-7779

This material is based upon work supported by USDA/NIFA under Award Number 2012-49200-20030.
 
   

Just Published Online:
Marketing Regional Farms and Wineries:
A Guide for California Agricultural Marketing Groups 

With sincere gratitude to the leaders of 24 of California's many regional agricultural marketing associations who generously participated in interviews or workshop presentations, we are excited to announce the online publication of a guide for California farm & wine trails and agricultural marketing groups: Marketing Regional Farms and Wineries. 

The focus of this guide is to share the experiences and advice of a representative group of leaders with other groups of California agricultural producers with similar goals and intentions. It includes:
  • A brief history of start-ups
  • Group goals
  • Organizational structure
  • Membership
  • Activities and marketing methods
  • Challenges and advice   
We hope this guide will be helpful to the operations of already existing farm and wine trails and agricultural marketing associations and to those groups of producers  considering or beginning collaborative marketing.

This project is funded in part by the California Department of Food and Agriculture Specialty Crop Block Grant Program.


California Small Farm Conference scholarship applications 
due by December 4, 2015


The upcoming California Small Farm Conference (CSFC) in Sacramento, CA  is scheduled for March 5 - 8, 2016. Offering field courses, educational and interactive workshops, a trade show, tasting reception and multiple networking opportunities, the CSFC is the state's premier gathering for small-scale farmers, farmers' market managers, agricultural students, educators and advocates.

Small-scale farmers and ranchers, beginning farmer/ranchers, farm/ranch employees and certified farmers' market managers are encouraged to apply for scholarships to attend  the 2016 conference. The deadline for applications is 5:00 p.m. PST on December 4, 2015.

What the Scholarship Includes:
  • For scholarship recipients, fees are significantly reduced to $100 (from $350) and just $25 (from $65) for a field course.
  • Scholarship package meals, educational materials, workshops, networking opportunities, and a ticket to the Tasting Reception are included,
  • Additionally, room sharing is available for scholarship recipients if hotel accommodations are needed.
To Apply:
Complete the online application before the December 4, 2015, deadline.

New Project:
Building a Network for California Agritourism
Development and Promotion

Good news! Thanks to support from many of you, the UC Small Farm Program was selected for funding by the USDA Farmers' Market Promotion Program to offer new education, communication and outreach programs for the California agritourism community. Here's a summary of the projects we hope you'll share with us:
  • Partnering with FarmsReach, we'll organize five webinars featuring experts, on agritourism topics. We'll also record and post them for future use.
  • On the FarmsReach platform, we'll organize an online discussion group for the California agritourism community.
  • Publish monthly newsletters - like the one you're now reading.
  • Develop a fresh look and a social media marketing campaign for the UC Agritourism Directory and Calendar, www.calagtour.org, boosting visibility for listed farms. (listing is free)
  • Offer workshops in four regions for everyone involved in California agritourism to share experiences and build collaboration.

Please watch for more news soon as we gear up for all these exciting projects. For more information, please contact Penny Leff, 530-752-7779. 

 


Is your agritourism operation or event on www.CalAgTour.org ?  
 
WHY NOT?   IT'S ALL FREE

It gets 3,000 website visits a month from people searching for California farms and ranches to visit. Getting your operation listed might help them find YOU. (Don't forget to upload a picture, too.) 

 

Check out our link and the expanding agritourism promotion on the Visit California website! 


If you are a working California farmer or rancher operating an agritourism business or organizing agritourism events, we invite you to complete the directory application or the event listing form online to be included in the directory. It's all free. If you're already a member, please check your listing and use the update form to send us changes.

(add paleff@ucdavis.edu to your email marketing list or use the event listing form. Please let us know what you've got planned so we can help you promote yourself) 


Some useful resources... 
  • Farm Based Education Network
    A free international member network established to strengthen and support the work of educators, farmers and community leaders providing access and experiences of all kinds on productive working farms 
  • Integrating Safety into Agritourism  
    This website contains a variety of walkthroughs, based on the type of little-girl-laptop.jpg operation, to help owners identify health and safety hazards and provides resources that can be used to help fix these hazards. It's a great tool that can be used to help keep children (and everyone) safe when they visit farms and ranches.
  • North America Farm Direct Marketing Association (NAFDMA) - a membership based trade association dedicated to providing endless peer-to-peer learning opportunities, connections and resources, for farmers who are passionate about the business of agritourism and farm direct marketing.  
  • UC Small Farm Program Agritourism - research reports, factsheets, handouts and presentations from workshops, articles and current projects
  • World Wide Workers on Organic Farms (WWOOF US) - linking visitors with organic farmers for educational exchange
  • Farm Stay U.S. - A website operated by the U.S. Farm Stay Association (and Scottie Jones of Leaping Lamb Farm in Alsea, Oregon), for promoting farm and ranch stays in the United States. The site includes resource sections for farm stay operators and for farm stay visitors.
Thanks for reading to the bottom of the page. Please forward this newsletter to anyone you think may find it useful (Use the "forward this email" link just below),or share using the links at the top.

Penny Leff, Agritourism Coordinator  
UC ANR Small Farm Program 
530-752-7779, paleff@ucdavis.edu