Agritourism and the adaptive re-use of farm buildings in New Zealand

Abstract

This paper reports findings from a study of the adaptive re-purposing of farm buildings for a wide array of agritourism activities. The research is being conducted in New Zealand where the international visitor sector is thriving. In response, an increasing number of farmers are attempting to boost their farm incomes by adding tourism ventures to their business portfolios. In doing so, many of them are using and preserving rural cultural heritage, particularly old agricultural and other rural buildings, while also diversifying farm activity. This element of agritourism therefore has an important role in the protection and adaptive re-use of farm buildings, farm landscape change, and the creation of new value and values in the countryside. In the cases we have studied, this entrepreneurial activity is largely farmer-driven and undertaken with some, but limited, financial support from central and local government. In considering the policy implications of our work, we call for the provision of advisory services to facilitate and enable New Zealand farmers to create profitable and sustainable high-quality tourism services that simultaneously preserve farm buildings.

Achieving sustainable development goals through agritourism in Algeria

“…Agritourism, an alternate to agricultural land use, can help preserve farms and improve their sustainability. In recent years, agritourism has been proposed increasingly in many regions in both developed and developing countries (MacKay et al , 2019) as a means of economic diversification (Kubickova and Campbell, 2018), environmental development (Bhatta et al , 2019) and landscape preservation in agricultural areas undergoing restructuring, as well as to meet the increased demand for amenity use in the countryside. This has led to the emergence of competition between different agritourism destinations (Joyner et al , 2018).…”

“…The development of agritourism can provide farms with an alternate source of income (Mackay et al , 2019; Tagliabue, 1998). Hence, it serves the social purposes of keeping farmers on the land, protecting the picturesque rural landscapes that attract tourists, educating urban populations about food production and supporting the production of distinctive regional agricultural products (Busby and Rendle, 2000; Oppermann, 1995).…”

Analyses of the Attitudes of Agricultural Holdings on the Development of Agritourism and the Impacts on the Economy, Society and Environment of Serbia

“…Agritourism, as a part of rural tourism, provides the possibility of diversification of rural areas and additional income to local farms [22], with one of the main advantages being the improvement of food and gastronomic offerings, which increases the economic and social well-being of the region [23][24][25][26].…”

“…In agritourism, the participants are directly involved in the activity, as agritourism attractions provide them with the opportunity to get in touch with farmers and hosts, as well as to learn and enjoy unique agricultural activities [24]. According to Mackay et al [22], in addition to the contents of the farm, agritourism should include other outdoor activities, such as visits to agricultural fields, tasting products from local stores, and visits to various cultural institutions. Mutual interactions between the food industry, agriculture, and tourism certainly exist [27,28], and that is where economic development stands out as the most important motive [21,22].…”

“…According to Mackay et al [22], in addition to the contents of the farm, agritourism should include other outdoor activities, such as visits to agricultural fields, tasting products from local stores, and visits to various cultural institutions. Mutual interactions between the food industry, agriculture, and tourism certainly exist [27,28], and that is where economic development stands out as the most important motive [21,22]. A highly developed agritourism industry in underdeveloped climates can help bring in more tourists and thus create new jobs and attract new investments, which will provide additional economic benefits to the region [29].…”