Georgia’s Agritourism
Route to Blue Ridge – Part 1 - by Savvy Mom Ruth Paget
Every
time my husband Laurent and I visit Atlanta, we go to Mercier Orchard in Blue
Ridge to buy apples, blueberry pies, honey, apple cider, and a few country
souvenirs outside the town of Blue Ridge on Georgia’s Agritourism Route I-575
North, towards the Appalachian Hiking Trail.
Agriturismo
began in Italy as Farm-Stay Tourism that shared many elements of Britain’s Bed
and Breakfast program. Agritourism has
evolved, and I wanted to do research on it to see how Blue Ridge, Georgia
interpreted this category of tourism.
The
first place I looked for information was the University of California – Davis
(UC-Davis) website on Agritourism, which defines this category of tourism as
follows:
“Agricultural
tourism is a commercial enterprise at a working farm or ranch conducted for the
enjoyment and education of visitors, and that generates supplemental income for
the owner or operator.”
UC-Davis
lists the following activities as fun and educational that can be part of
agritourism:
-farm
stands or shops
-U
– Pick (pick your own produce)
-farm
stays
-tours
-on-farm
classes
-fairs
-pumpkin
patches
-festivals
-corn
mazes
-Christmas
tree farms
-winery
weddings
-orchard
dinners
-youth
camps
-barn
dances
-hunting
or fishing
-guest
ranches
All
of the above are what agritourism in the United States has morphed into.
My
next research stop was to check out what agriturismo was in Italy. I have read many articles about it in Saveur magazine and The New York Times, but tripsavvy.com
summarized what created agriturismo in Italy very well:
“Starting
in the 1950s and continuing through the 1970s, traditional small-scale farming
in Italy became less profitable and many farmers abandoned their farms to
search for work in larger towns…
In
1985 Italian lawmakers had created a legal definition for agriturismo, which
allowed, and in some cases provided funds for, the rehabilitation and
restoration of many abandoned rural buildings and estates.”
This
legislation set up a model for farm stays that resembled Britain’s bed and
breakfast program, which I had experienced as a child on a trip there with my
mother and great-aunt.
At
one country farm where we stayed, we ate a shepherd’s pie dinner when we
arrived and slept under a snug thatched roof in the rain.
The
next day I ate a hearty English breakfast that I enjoy eating to this day and
can make it, too:
-two
eggs over easy
-sheet
pan baked potatoes with Italian herbs (oregano, thyme, and rosemary)
-baked
tomato with bread crumbs and chopped parsley
-thick-cut
fried bacon
-toast
with marmalade
-a
big pot of English breakfast tea with milk
After
breakfast I did what true bed and breakfast lodgers were supposed to do:
-I
milked a cow by hand.
-I
fed muddy pigs.
-I
pulled eggs out from under hens and cuddled a few, fuzzy chicks.
We
left with mom driving after I had said good-bye to all the farm animals.
As
in Britain, the agristurismo farms in Italy were supposed to be working
ones. Italians expanded their services
to include cooking classes and tours of wine, cheese, and olive production
facilities. Some agriturismo farms added
restaurants using farm products and products from nearby villages and towns.
Now
many agriturismo farms offer air conditioning and swimming pools to make the
farm experience a little more luxurious in their out-of-the-way farms.
End
of part 1.
To
be continued.
By
Ruth Paget, author of Eating Soup with Chopsticks and Marrying France
Click here for: Ruth Paget's Amazon Books
Click here for: Ruth Paget's Amazon Books
