The size and scope of agri-tourism in South Africa

MCom (Tourism Management), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2019The term agri-tourism is still a relatively new concept in South Africa and few farmers are aware of what exactly it entails. Agri-tourism overlaps with several different tourism sectors, including ecotourism, rural tourism, wildlife/hunting tourism, adventure tourism, geotourism, cultural and heritage tourism, and wine tourism. Most of these industries have natural elements to them, and all of these industries require a sustainable approach. Some of the biggest advantages of agri-tourism include farmers gaining an additional income, creating more job opportunities for local communities, economic benefits to the local area, preservation of natural and cultural elements of the area, and it diversifies farming activities. Literature reviews reveal several studies that focussed on agri-tourism around the world, especially during the past decade. Research on agri-tourism in South Africa focused mainly on investigating area-specific agri-tourism such as wine tourism in the Western Cape, agri-festivals such as the NAMPO Harvest Day, and agri-tourism in Limpopo. These research studies were conducted either from a supply perspective (farmers) of from a demand perspective (tourists). No study focusing on what agri-tourism activities/attractions were available in South Africa – the supply perspective – was found. Therefore, the goal of this research was to determine the size and scope of agri-tourism in South Africa by examining agri-tourism activities/attractions that farmers were hosting on their farms. This goal was achieved through four specific objectives, namely to (1) analyse theories and relevant literature concerning tourism and agri-tourism in South Africa and in other parts of the world; (2) analyse the agriculture sector of South Africa to determine the status of agri-tourism and what it included, as well as what the different provinces had to offer tourists, which would also determine the size of the contribution that agri-tourism made to farms in South Africa; (3) conduct a survey to achieve the objectives of this research by determining the size and scope of agri-tourism and to compare different agri-tourism activities in different provinces; and (4) draw conclusions concerning the size and scope of agri-tourism in South Africa and make recommendations for farmers and other stakeholders in the industry to optimise the opportunities that this sector has to offer. The first literature review (Chapter 2) showed that different researchers had identified different definitions for agri-tourism over the years, but no universal definition existed yet. For the purposes of this study, agri-tourism was defined as any activity or attraction that allows the tourist to visit a working/commercial farm for education, enjoyment or to be actively involved in the day-to-day activities of the farm. Bernardo et al. (2004:1) mention five main categories in which all agri-tourism activities and attractions can be divided. These five categories made up the framework for the research and included outdoor recreation, educational experiences, entertainment, hospitality services, and direct sales on the farm. The literature also refers to 84 different types of agri-tourism activities/attractions around the world that are divided into these five categories. These activities/attractions were used as a basis to investigate agri-tourism in South Africa. The second literature review (Chapter 3) examined the agriculture and tourism sectors in South Africa. Several parts of these sectors were discussed, but the most important revelation was that the agriculture sector contributed 5.21% (2018) and the tourism sector contributed 4.35% (2016) to job opportunities in South Africa. The questionnaire “Agri-tourism in South Africa” was distributed among South African farmers based in all nine provinces between July 2017 and June 2018. Physical questionnaires were distributed at several agricultural events such as the Agri SA Congress, regional meetings of Agri Western Cape, Agri Northern Cape chairpersons’ meeting, the NAMPO Harvest Day, the AGRI 5 Commodities Workshop and Expo, the Agri Free State Young Farmer Congress, and the Potatoes SA Congress. Google Forms was used to design the online questionnaire, and the online link to this e-questionnaire was distributed to farmers through organisations such as Agri SA, TLU, Agri Western Cape, Agri Mpumalanga, Agri Gauteng, Agri Limpopo, Agri Free State, VLVK, VVLU, Farmer’s Weekly (social media), and Agri-tourism South Africa. Other organisations that assisted with the questionnaire distribution included Grootplaas (KykNET), RSG Radio Station, NWU TREES, and OVK News Magazine. A total of 557 usable questionnaires were collected from farmers across the country. Data collected from the e-questionnaires were captured by using Google Forms and exported to Microsoft® Office Excel 2016. The questionnaires that were obtained by means of physical distribution were captured in the same Microsoft® Office Excel sheet. Finally, all the data were analysed by means of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS). Key findings in the literature identified different agri-tourism methods, advantages, and disadvantages from around the world. While some of these findings were not applicable to South Africa, many of the theories, for instance motivations for hosting agri-tourism in a South African context, could be examined. Key findings in the survey results provided a profile of the average South Africa farmer. It also identified several gaps in the agriculture and tourism sectors that could be filled and improved with agri-tourism. While 76% of the respondents indicated that they were not hosting any form of agri-tourism on their farms, agri-tourism activities/attractions that were hosted most in South Africa included (in alphabetical order) animal rides, bird watching, camping, farm stay/accommodation, farm tours, fishing, hiking/nature trails, hunting, mountain climbing, off-road vehicle driving/4x4 routes, picnicking, restaurants, social events, water activities, wedding and special events, and wildlife viewing and photography. In terms of expansion, farmers identified farm stay/accommodation, wildlife viewing and photography, hiking/nature trails, cycling, and bird watching as activities/attractions that they planned to implement within the next five years. The results of the study can be used to improve and develop agri-tourism in South Africa. One of the largest gaps that were identified in this study is education – a lack of knowledge about agri-tourism. Many farmers were not aware of the opportunities that agri-tourism offered and they were not aware of the support systems to assist them in implementing and managing agri-tourism sustainably. While several organisations assisted with agri-tourism, there was a large gap in information offered to farmers. Similar research that can be conducted on agri-tourism in South Africa include developing a marketing model for local and international markets, developing a model for sustainably implementing agri-tourism on a farm, or even determining the financial contribution that agri-tourism makes to a farmNRF (National Research Foundation) NWU Professor Melville SaaymanMaster