SOUTH CAROLINA
MIDLANDS
AGRITOURISM
COMMUNITY
OUTREACH INITIATIVE
Amanda Bollinger
ENVR 790
MEERM Program
University of South Carolina
Overview
• Expected Goals and Outcomes
• Key Resources
• Project Phases
• Methodology
• Survey Content
• Farm List
• Farm Examples
• Common Agritourism Marketing Problems
• Agritourism Marketing Handbook
• Accomplishments
Outcomes and Goals
• Pitch agritourism option to those small farms that do
not yet benefit from it.
• Give small farmers the ability to replicate successful
agritourism strategies on their own farms elsewhere in
the state.
• Give local small farmers a greater ability to use
agritourism to generate extra income using what they
already do.
Outcomes and Goals
• Create outreach between small South Carolina
farms and their local communities.
• Educate South Carolina residents about local
environmental friendly/organic/green/sustainable
food options.
• Educate South Carolina residents about
sustainability and the importance of the
environment around them.
Faculty Advisors and Internship Supervisor
• Dr. Joe Jones
• Director of the Environmental Genomics Facility at USC
• Co-owner of Doko Farms
• Dr. David Lamie
• Assistant professor at Clemson University
• Contact at the Clemson Institute for Economic and Community Development
• Eric McClam (Internship Supervisor)
• Farm manager at City Roots
Important Resources
•Market Maker
• http://sc.marketmaker.uiuc.edu/
•“Agritourism, Your Way: A How-To Guide for
Successful Agritourism Enterprises” document
• http://www.clemson.edu/public/ciecd/focus_areas/agribusiness/programs/agritou
rism/agritourismresources/agritourismyourway.pdf
Market Maker
• Put together by the University of Illinois
• “Connecting willing markets and quality sources
of food from farm and fisheries to fork”
• An interactive mapping system that locates businesses
and markets of agricultural products in South Carolina,
providing an important link between producers and
consumers.
“Agritourism, Your Way: A How-To Guide for
Successful Agritourism Enterprises” Document
• Complied by The University of Georgia’s Center for
Agribusiness and Economic Development and North
Carolina State Cooperative Extension Service’s
Business Side of Agritourism Program Series.
• Guide to financial, legal and business planning
aspects of agritourism.
Project Phases
•Phase 1: SC Agritourism Information
Gathering
•Phase 2: SC Midlands Agritourism
Marketing Handbook
•Phase 3: SC Midlands Farm Tour (Future)
Timeline
DATE
MILESTONES
November 2011
Begin Internship at City Roots
Begin Project Plan
December 2011
Begin Phase 1
Finish Project Plan
January 2012
Continue Phase 1
February 2012
Begin Phase 2
Continue Phase 1
March 2012
Continue Phase 1 and 2
April 2012
Finish Phase 1 and 2
Finish Internship
Methodology
• Compiled Richland/ Lexington county farm list using local and
online resources
• Created survey using general information questions, targeted
interest questions and agritourism registration questionnaire
from Market Maker
• Called and/or e-mailed farms on list
• Arranged farm visit if possible
• Most visits lasted between 30 minutes and 1.5 hours
• Attempted to schedule visits to farms in same area on same
day
Survey Content
• Hours of operation
• Size of farm
• Area composition (urban, suburban, rural)
• Farm products and methods of selling (on-site, market, online)
• Market participation
• “Environmentally friendly” or “sustainable” practices
• Online marketing participation
• Numbers of visitors
• Agritourism
• Market Maker agritourism registration information
Farm List Resources
• Online Resources
• Market Maker
• Alllocalharvest.org
• Certified SC Grown member list
• South Carolina Specialty Food Association member list
• Local Resources
• Word-of-mouth
• All-Local Farmers’ Market
• South Carolina State Farmers’ Market
Farm List
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Big Moon Farm
Bridlewood Alpacas
Busy Bee Honey
City Roots
Clayton Rawl Farms, Inc.
Clinton Sease Farm and Corn Maze
Cottle Strawberry Farm
Crooked Cedar Farm
D&J Farm
Doko Farm
Eleazer Farm
Floral & Hardy Farm
Freshly Grown Farms
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GnomeGrown
Greener Acres Organic Farms
Heritage Fields Farm
Humble Farm
J&H Farm
James R. Sease Farm
Koon Farm and Lumber
Lever Farm
Sam’s Produce
Sandy Run Farm
Round River Farms
Wannabee Farms
Walter P. Rawl & Sons, Inc.
Problems That Arose
• Not all farms accepted visitors on-site
• Farmers often too busy to deal with visit and survey
• Tour scheduling of farms in same area on same day
did not work out due to chaotic schedules
• E-mailed surveys difficult to get back
• GPS problems finding farms
• Lack of clear signage to mark farm location
• Many farms have never contemplated agritourism
Lever Farm (Pomaria, SC)
• Products: strawberries,
blackberries, blueberries,
vegetables
• Size: 49 acres
• U-pick operation
• Website and Facebook
• Field trips which bring in
about 200-300 children each
year
• Community support!
Sandy Run Farm (Gaston, SC)
• Products: milk and ice cream
• Size: 10 acres
• Area: rural
• Cows are located in Pomaria and milked by a friend
• Five different types of milk bottled
• Many different flavors of ice cream
• Sell to businesses and individuals (i.e. Orangeburg Piggly
Wiggly, Blue Flour Bakery, etc.)
• No website or Facebook page
• No visitors or agritourism
Heritage Fields Farm (Irmo, SC)
• Size: 10.5 acres
• Area: Suburban
• Products: vegetables and flowers
• Hours of Operation: from “sun up
to sun down”
• Selling: On-site sales through farm
stand on “honor system”
• Visitors: 900-1000 during summer
• Greenhouse with hydroponic
system
• Drip irrigation
• No current interest in agritourism
Sam’s Produce (Leesville, SC)
• Size: 5 acres
• Area: rural
• Products: vegetables and pecans
• Sells to individuals and at flea markets
• Sells Fridays and Saturdays at “Traffic Circle”
• Does not practice agritourism
• Overproducing is a problem; not enough buyers for
total crop
Big Moon Farm (Leesville, SC)
• Products: vegetables, herbs, beef,
pork, turkeys, lamb, chickens, eggs
• Area: rural
• Size: 50 acres
• Visitors: approximately 500 yearly
• CSA program in suburban area
• Agritourism
• Farm to Fork dinners
• Classes
• Day Camp
• Current market strategies:
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Facebook
Word-of-mouth
LocalHarvest.org
Certified SC Grown
COMMON AGRITOURISM MARKETING
PROBLEMS
•No visible road signs.
•No website, Facebook or web presence.
•Limited staff.
Project Deliverables
• South Carolina Agritourism Marketing Handbook
• Create companion piece to “Agritourism, Your Way: A
How-To Guide for Successful Agritourism Enterprises”
document
Agritourism Marketing Handbook includes:
•Becoming familiar with surrounding market
•Promotion and advertising
•Image and partnerships in community
•Product, Place, Price and Promotion
Agritourism Marketing Handbook includes:
• Best low-budget strategies and
creative ideas
• Appropriate marketing for
varying forms of agritourism
• Rural vs. urban agritourism
marketing
• Case studies of what works
well for farms currently
practicing agritourism in South
Carolina
Agritourism Marketing Handbook includes:
• How to appeal to different groups such as schools,
community groups, parents with small children, etc…
• Example lesson plans for school groups by age
• Environmental/green/organic/sustainable marketing
• Co-ops with other small farms to sell and promote
nearby farms’ produce and goods
Accomplishments
• Identification of farms currently using and not
using agritourism
• Contact with local farms
• Creation of survey materials
• Creation of Richland/Lexington counties
agritourism marketing handbook
• City Roots Internship
• Over 240 hours of internship work completed
Acknowledgements
• Dr. Joe Jones
• Dr. David Lamie
• Eric McClam