Doug Carder
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Farm tour puts county businesses on center stage
Column
Mike Martin leaned against a pen and smiled as he watched Bill Jonte and his family from Kansas City, Mo., marvel over the emus at 4 D Acres last Sunday.
Nobody knows better than Martin, co-owner of the emu farm southwest of Louisburg, that the annual Miami County Farm Tour has been an agritourism bonanza, attracting more visitors like the Jonte family and their tourism dollars to the county each year.
“We had our best year yet since the spring tour began five years ago,” said Martin about last weekend’s tour.
One of the tour’s organizers, Martin said the event not only attracts tourism dollars to the county, but also new residents.
“We’ve had people tell us they decided to move to Miami County after taking the tour.”
Sauntering down the landscaped path outside Somerset Ridge Vineyard & Winery later Sunday morning, Jonte opened a sack to display the four bottles of wine he had just purchased. A first-time visitor, Jonte vowed to bring his family to Miami County again.
Winery co-owner Dennis Reynolds said the farm tour sets the tone for the spring and summer season at Somerset Ridge.
Cy Aiken, co-owner of Cy and Dee’s Blackberries, said the annual farm tour provides one of the best opportunities to promote his U-pick berry patch southeast of Louisburg.
“We had people tell us that they will be back when the berries are ready to pick,” Aiken said of the upcoming picking season, which runs from mid-July through August.
Gerald Silvers, owner of Silver Lining Herefords, said several visitors inquired about purchasing beef from him at his ranch southwest of Louisburg.
“I couldn’t sell them beef. You have to be licensed by the USDA, but I might check into getting licensed so I can set up a retail operation,” Silvers said Sunday. “I probably could have sold 100 pounds of beef today.”
Silvers was able to guarantee a side of beef to a woman who wanted to purchase one of his steers and have it slaughtered at a USDA-certified food locker.
Silvers’ interest in adding retail sales to his traditional cow-calf operation is not unlike many ranchers and farmers in Miami County who are looking for ways to add value to their agribusinesses.
4 D Acres has a full line of emu products on display, including soaps, lotions and other skin-care items that some people may not associate with the giant birds.
“We had around 300 visitors and doubled the income we made from last year’s tour,” Martin said.
He credits some of that success to Slowfood Kansas City, a branch of an international group that encourages people to eat locally-grown products. Slowfood sponsored cooking demonstrations featuring products from stops on the tour last weekend at the Louisburg Cider Mill. On Sunday, guest chefs Patrick and Ulrike Poetter of Beethoven’s No. 9 restaurant in Paola, prepared an emu omelette and emu pasta with products supplied by 4 D Acres.
“We had several people stop who said they came over after eating the emu samples at the Cider Mill,” Martin said.
Since its inception five years ago, the spring farm tour has been a welcome addition to Miami County.
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Nobody knows better than Martin, co-owner of the emu farm southwest of Louisburg, that the annual Miami County Farm Tour has been an agritourism bonanza, attracting more visitors like the Jonte family and their tourism dollars to the county each year.
“We had our best year yet since the spring tour began five years ago,” said Martin about last weekend’s tour.
One of the tour’s organizers, Martin said the event not only attracts tourism dollars to the county, but also new residents.
“We’ve had people tell us they decided to move to Miami County after taking the tour.”
Sauntering down the landscaped path outside Somerset Ridge Vineyard & Winery later Sunday morning, Jonte opened a sack to display the four bottles of wine he had just purchased. A first-time visitor, Jonte vowed to bring his family to Miami County again.
Winery co-owner Dennis Reynolds said the farm tour sets the tone for the spring and summer season at Somerset Ridge.
Cy Aiken, co-owner of Cy and Dee’s Blackberries, said the annual farm tour provides one of the best opportunities to promote his U-pick berry patch southeast of Louisburg.
“We had people tell us that they will be back when the berries are ready to pick,” Aiken said of the upcoming picking season, which runs from mid-July through August.
Gerald Silvers, owner of Silver Lining Herefords, said several visitors inquired about purchasing beef from him at his ranch southwest of Louisburg.
“I couldn’t sell them beef. You have to be licensed by the USDA, but I might check into getting licensed so I can set up a retail operation,” Silvers said Sunday. “I probably could have sold 100 pounds of beef today.”
Silvers was able to guarantee a side of beef to a woman who wanted to purchase one of his steers and have it slaughtered at a USDA-certified food locker.
Silvers’ interest in adding retail sales to his traditional cow-calf operation is not unlike many ranchers and farmers in Miami County who are looking for ways to add value to their agribusinesses.
4 D Acres has a full line of emu products on display, including soaps, lotions and other skin-care items that some people may not associate with the giant birds.
“We had around 300 visitors and doubled the income we made from last year’s tour,” Martin said.
He credits some of that success to Slowfood Kansas City, a branch of an international group that encourages people to eat locally-grown products. Slowfood sponsored cooking demonstrations featuring products from stops on the tour last weekend at the Louisburg Cider Mill. On Sunday, guest chefs Patrick and Ulrike Poetter of Beethoven’s No. 9 restaurant in Paola, prepared an emu omelette and emu pasta with products supplied by 4 D Acres.
“We had several people stop who said they came over after eating the emu samples at the Cider Mill,” Martin said.
Since its inception five years ago, the spring farm tour has been a welcome addition to Miami County.