Published in Spring 2024
The report An Initial Economic Impact Estimate of Agritourism in Oregon’s Willamette Valley was published by Oregon State University Extension in February 2024. The report is significant as it provides local economic impact of agritourism, including direct sales, which has long been believed to have beneficial impacts for farming operations, but lacked concrete data to support this notion.
Agritourism, which encompasses activities such as farm tours, on-farm lodging, and direct sales, has been recognized for its potential to generate additional revenue streams, provide employment opportunities for family and community members, and provide education to the public about agriculture. However, until now, there has been a lack of local data to quantify these benefits.
The project was spearheaded by the OSU Extension Agricultural Tourism team, led by Melissa Fery and Audrey Comerford, and took approximately a year and a half to complete. This collaborative effort pulled together outside funders from economic development and tourism organizations, as well as multiple Extension Service Districts, to support the research. The project team also included retired Oregon State University Economist, Bruce Sorte, analyzed data from a survey sent to agritourism operators in the study area, the USDA 2017 Census of Agriculture and IMPLAN modeling.
The study results can be found online at https://beav.es/cky for the full report and https://beav.es/ckF for the executive summary. This report provides valuable insights into the economic contributions of agritourism in the Willamette Valley and highlights its importance for local farming communities.