Agritourism in the United States

In America, agritourism is wide-spread^{[citation needed]} and includes any farm open to the public at least part of the year.^{[citation needed]} Tourists can pick fruits and vegetables, ride horses, taste honey, learn about wine, shop in farm gift shops and farm stands for local and regional produce or hand-crafted gifts. Such "U-pick" farms were at their most popular in the 1970s.^[1] Other terms associated with agritourism are "farm direct marketing", "sustainable agriculture" and "agritainment".

According the USDA, Cooperative State, Education and Extension Service, "Tourism is becoming increasingly important to the U.S. economy. A conservative estimate from the Federal Reserve Board in Kansas, based on 2000 data, shows that basic travel and tourism industries accounted for 3.6 percent of all U.S. employment. Even more telling, data from the Travel Industry Association of America indicate that 1 out of every 18 people in the U.S. has a job directly resulting from travel expenditures."^[2][3][4]

Through the Small Farm Center at the University of California, "Agricultural tourism or agritourism, is one alternative for improving the incomes and potential economic viability of small farms and rural communities. Some forms of agritourism enterprises are well developed in California, including fairs and festivals. Other possibilities still offer potential for development."^[5] They have developed a California Agritourism Database that "provides visitors and potential entrepreneurs with information about existing agritourism locations throughout the state."^[6] In the, Agricultural Tourism: Helpful Agricultural Tourism (Agritourism) Definitions fact sheet by the Small Farm Center, definitions are provided for terminology associated in agritourism including the actual phrase, "Agricultural Tourism" which is defined as referring to the "act of visiting a working farm or any agricultural, horticultural or agribusiness operation for the purpose of enjoyment, education, or active involvement in the activities of the farm or operation