Media contact:
Misti Preston
Phone: (573) 751-8596
Misti.Preston@mda.mo.gov

For Immediate Release: April 14, 2006

AgriMissouri Hosts Agritourism Workshop

(JEFFERSON CITY, Mo.) – Traveling to rural destinations is becoming more popular as urban residents seek places to pick ripe blueberries, negotiate turns in corn mazes and enjoy Missouri wines. Many agriculture producers are seizing these agritourism opportunities and looking for ways to host larger groups. Group bus tours are one way to increase the number of visitors to an agriculture business.

On Tuesday, May 23, the Missouri Department of Agriculture will co-sponsor a workshop entitled “Growing Your Group Tour Market” at the George Washington Carver State Office Building, 1616 Missouri Boulevard, in Jefferson City. The workshop will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and will educate agriculture operators about the facilities required to host a bus tour, how to find group tour operators and how to market their businesses to group tour operators.

“Group tours are a great way to add value to any agritourism business,” said Tony Stafford, director of MDA’s Agriculture Business Development Division. “The more people who visit a site and experience the Missouri products first-hand, the more potential that business, and our state’s economy, have for growth.”

AgriMissouri Commission member Donna Cordle, a leading tourism industry expert from Legacy Dimensions, will open the workshop. A panel discussion led by agritourism business leaders and additional tourism industry insiders will follow. Sarah Gehring, member services coordinator of AgriMissouri, will also host a presentation on the benefits of membership in the AgriMissouri program. AgriMissouri is a promotional program through MDA which helps Missouri companies and producers effectively market their goods and services as Missouri-made.

The cost to attend the “Growing Your Group Tour Market” is $10 for AgriMissouri and Missouri Travel Council members and $15 for non-members. For more information, contact Gehring at (573) 522-9213 or by email at Sarah.Gehring@mda.mo.gov.

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