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Unlocking Georgia’s Agritourism Revolution

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Peachtree City, GA |

With the goal of supporting local farms and spreading the story of agriculture, the GFB Certified Farm Markets program has seen their number of participating farms skyrocket over the past few years, providing a snapshot of the diversity of operations that can be found here in the state.

“This year, we have a hundred farms across the state of Georgia that invite you to come and visit them to see what they do. No two are alike. So, we have everything from farms like Alo Farms, who is hydroponic, to row crops, to hog farms, to farms that do both vegetables and beautiful flowers,” says Kelly Henry, GFB Certified Farm Market Coordinator.

To help guide you through all of these different choices is the GFB Farm Passport, which not only provides a detailed description of the more than one hundred operations, but also rewards for paying them a visit.

“You take your farm passport with you and just like if you’re visiting another country, you get stamps. Your stamps earn you prizes at the end of the year. Five is a T-shirt. Ten is Ag swag. Twenty is a farm to table dinner and tour, our signature event of the year. And then, thirty is goodies from the farm,” says Henry.

It’s not just the visitors that benefit from this program, but also the farms that are involved like Alo Farms, a unique operation in Peachtree City.

“We joined a few years ago and it’s just been an amazing partnership. All the participants in the stamp program are just excited to be here. They have great questions. We love being able to share and talk with them about the farm. So, it brings a lot of enthusiastic customers who appreciate agriculture and what it takes to run and operate a farm. It’s brought us a lot of local people who didn’t know we were here,” says Alec Brown – GM of Alo Farms. “So, Alo Farms is a family owned and operated company. My dad, Jefferson, he’s an architect, and he started our farm about 15 years ago on the design and innovation side as a means to address food insecurity on a large scale and specifically in urban environments. So, our commercial farm right now is less than 20 thousand square feet. We’ll out produce about 75-125 acres worth in soil of the same types of crops.”

This is just one of the many agritourism destinations that will be featured in the new, 2024 Farm Passport when it’s released in less than a month.

“Kickoff is exciting every year, March 16th and will run all the way through the year. So, we even get those Christmas tree farms in at the end of the year. So, if you haven’t gotten your passport yet, you can start it at any of the participating farms found at gfb.ag/passport. You can also pick one up at any of your local county Farm Bureau offices,” says Henry.

By: Damon Jones

San Juan Hosted 2023 AFBF Convention

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San Juan, PR

After years of planning and endless challenges, including two major hurricanes, San Juan finally got to say, “Welcome, Mi Familia” to American Farm Bureau’s annual convention. It’s a time to unite and hear the opinions of current agriculture leaders as well as future ag leaders on the current state of the farming industry. It’s also a time to put aside the daily stresses of farm life and enjoy the sights and sounds the host city has to offer, or in this case the host island.

“San Juan right now, so far would be at the top of the list,” says Daniel Johnson, First Vice President for Georgia Farm Bureau. “We’ve been to a lot of conventions, a lot of places, and this compares to anything we have in the United States. I mean, their convention center is wonderful. It’s state of art.”

Tom McCall, GFB President adding, “I was pleasantly surprised. All the facilities and the hotels down here, and there’s a good crowd. They’re expecting around five-thousand people from across the country.”

While many of the attendees used this convention as a destination vacation, for the GFB Young Farmers and Ranchers taking part in the various competitions, vacations aside, this was a business trip.

“I come down here with a job and task at mind, and also, like I said, to meet new people and experience this convention. This is my first time ever attending American Farm Bureau, so I wanna soak it in and learn. That was my main reason for coming down here,” says Hart County Young Farmer, Brian Fleming.

Admitting he was nervous before his presentation in the Excellence in AG competition, Fleming says he stayed up all night rehearsing, which resulted in little to no sleep, but once he got going, Brian was smooth, confident, and spoke with emotion when expressing his passion for agriculture.

“From the time I was a little boy, ag’s been my life. As I got older, Farm Bureau became my life and the two combined together. Like I said in that last slide, I want the future generations to have that same opportunity that have been afforded to me over the years. So, that’s where my passion comes from,” says Fleming.

Brian however, wasn’t the only one with passion on his side. Willie Sizemore of Leesburg had a virtual cakewalk to the sweet-sixteen of the discussion meet. This future lawyer arrived in Puerto Rico with well thought out opinions and ideas for the purpose of problem solving, which of course is the whole premise of these discussions.

“What’s interesting about this competition compared to the state is you get all these nationwide perspectives,” says Sizemore. “You know, we had an individual who was competing with us that raised pigs in Nevada outside of Las Vegas and fed leftovers from the casinos to their operation to reduce input costs. We’ve got to wake up early in the morning, put on a suit at the beach, and that’s not a normal thing you would do, but it’s important to represent Georgia Farm Bureau this way and to represent our County Farm Bureau, Lee County Farm Bureau. For me, it’s important to show up prepared and and do well, and that’s why I’m here is to do well. It might be a business trip, but it’s a fun trip at the same time.”

By: Ray D’Alessio