ISSAAS: Linking Agriculture with Tourism
I recently attended the press release session of ISSAAS (International Society for Southeast Asian Agricultural Sciences) during the start of their 2013 Congress here in Manila. I am a big fan of Agri-Tourism so I thought I’d listen in and get their thoughts on some burning issues related to Agriculture and Tourism as well.
Global Warming
One of the main issues of the Agriculture Industry is Global Warming so to mitigate this, they are trying harder to keep up with the changes in the environment. They use more water for irrigation and on the other side, they use more storm resilient crops to survive sudden storms and typhoons. Agriculture was not as it used to be but we must keep up and stay resilient to keep the food basket full.
Attracting Young Minds
The new generation of adults are leaving the farm and very few are taking Agricultural related courses in place of more popular and in-demand city courses. This problem is the same across all countries. Young people are moving out of their Family Farms to move to the city, leaving the farm to be ran by their old folks with no clear future on succession. To mitigate this, countries are offering free Agricultural Courses to individuals who want to pursue a career in Agriculture. Even in the Philippines, UPLB offers subsidies to some agriculture related courses. In Japan, they included “Farm Visits” to the Educational Field Trip Itinerary to familiarize the students about the farm activities – in the hopes that they will like it and get a career in Agriculture.
GMO: Genetically Modified Organisms
A surprisingly sensitive topic between the members of ISSAAS. Some are ok with it some were not so much. But among all the answers given, what struck me was – it really exists. GMO is being used for the food security of the world BUT unfortunately, there are no extensive research or studies on the long term effects of these GMO Products on humans and the environment. Everything is still in the Gray Area.
Plantation Based Farming
Plantation based farming is basically utilizing a huge amount of land dedicated in the production of a certain produce. For example: Banana Plantations, Coconut Plantations and now the ever Growing Palm Plantation for the production of Palm Oil. The challenge here is, huge amounts of lands are being used as plantation lands since it is easier to maintain focus on a certain product than to allow other produce to be planted and harvested. More and more chunks of land are being converted into Palm Plantation and less and less lands are being used for other crops.
Organic Products
Organic Stuff are becoming more and more popular nowadays and people are paying the premium. The problem is, particularly here in the Philippines, there are only few private organization which offers organic certifications and no government official seal on organic products. That is why even though products are marketed as organic, the public is not really assured of the authenticity of the seal and at the same time, the public is not even aware that there should be a seal of authenticity. Currently, the organic farming relies on trust.
Agri-Tourism
Agri-Tourism is becoming bigger and bigger nowadays. In Japan, they have farm tours where you can actually take part of the actual farming process – Hands On! In the Philippines, there are bee farm plantations, strawberry picking in Baguio and other family or privately owned farm restaurants and resorts which cater to tourists. The challenge for the organization is to raise awareness about Agri-Tourism, make it more mainstream and to get more support from the government.
Member Countries of the ISSAAS meet every year to present new technologies and to impart the best practices in the Agricultural Industry. Last 2012 and this year 2013, ISSAAS Congress were held here in the Philippines. The 2014 ISSAAS Congress will be held in Japan. To know more about ISSAAS, visit their website at ISSAAS.ORG.
Hanggang sa Muli Paalam!
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By: DENCIO
Originally Posted On: DENCIO.COM
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Very nice sharing your provided information is very helpful for all agri-travelers. It is a form of niche tourism that is considered a growth industry in many parts of the world, including Australia, Canada, the United States and the Philippines. Agritourists can choose from a wide range of activities that include picking fruits and vegetables, riding horses, tasting honey, learning about wine and cheesemaking, or shopping in farm gift shops and farm stands for local and regional produce or hand crafted gifts. I also want to go with bus tours to the grand canyon for agri trip.
Nice sharing dear! This blog is very informative and a great kind of help for travelers. I also got a clue about a tour. This summer I would like to visit the Philippines after my grand canyon tour from la. I hope it will be a great attraction to visit in summer.
I agree with you and like your all mention points. The new generation of adults are leaving the farm and very few are taking Agricultural related courses in place of more popular and in-demand city courses. This problem is the same across all countries especially in small scale countries. During my la bus tours I observe peoples thoughts and what they like to do.
A planner can choose from a wide range of activities that include a better destination for leaving and easily collaborate with the agricultural related courses. Linking agriculture and tourism, its an nice idea to share with us.
Thanks for this wonderful post your shared information is very helpful for all blog readers. The purpose of this tourism has the potential to generate increased on-farm revenues, and, given strategic management, could also boost farm profitability. I have got a lot of new ideas and information about agro tourism during my mini circle island tour last year. In these days agro tourism has changed and has developed into an important part of the tourist sector in the Mediterranean.
It’s an awesome blog with huge information about Agricultural and Plantation. I’m also going to yellowstone tours with my class fellows to know more informative techniques about Plantation. We are also taking help from a guide to know important points of Agricultural. Hope this tour will be useful for us.