Summerton S.C. Blog: agriculture

Showing posts with label agriculture. Show all posts

12.4.19

AgriTourism in Clarendon County and Across Santee Cooper country

AgriTourism usually involves things like buying produce direct from a farm stand or local farmers market, navigating a corn maze, picking fruit, feeding animals, or actually staying on a ranch or farm. Read more about South Carolina Farmers Markets and the growing South Carolina AgriTourism industry.

Check out these certified roadside markets in Clarendon County, SC:

* Check out other AgriTourism sites across Santee Cooper Country in S.C.

19.12.16

Introduction to 'Open' Agriculture Software and Tools

Collaboration, Open Solutions, and Innovation (COSI) are the key management strategies individuals and organizations need to embrace and incorporate in their daily lives and business practices in order to compete and succeed in the 21st century. The growing acceptance, adoption and application of these new management strategies is already evident in almost every sector of the economy.

Industries and businesses throughout the world are being revolutionized through the application of these three unique and powerful management strategies. When combined, these COSI strategies create a robust model for accelerating change, achieving significant operational efficiencies, and improving the quality of products and services being provided by public and private sector organizations in the U.S. and other countries.

Collaborative development efforts to create innovative, free and open source software (FOSS) tools, applications, and other solutions for use by individuals and corporations involved in agriculture are also well underway. These innovative 'Open Agriculture' solutions are being released under one or more 'open' licensing or copyright arrangements that allow both public and private institutions to acquire and use these tools at little or no cost. This has tremendous potential consequences for individuals and organizations around the world that face funding challenges.

The following are links to some selected 'open source' Agriculture software and tools:

USDA

Find out more about 'open source' software, 'open data', 'open access' information, and 'open communities' and other resources for use in Agriculture, AgriTourism, Farming... at http://Agriculture.COSITech.Net

6.8.15

AgriTourism - It's A Good Fit with 'Four Summerton'

The largest industry in South Carolina is agriculture. The second largest is tourism. Combine the two and what do you have? AgriTourism - which might be a perfect fit with 'Four Summerton'.

Agritourism offers a way to supplement a farm income and while also helping consumers become more aware of the contributions agriculture makes to their region. It is one of the fastest growing segments of the travel industry.

Some examples of Agritourism activities include:

Tours of local vinyards and wineries
Festivals celebrating regional foods
Road side stands selling local produce
Setting up local Farmers Markets
Self-harvesting farms , e.g. strawberry's, blueberries...
Farms offering hay rides, corn mazes...
Dining on regional cuisine and local produce
Bed & Breakfast (B&B) Stays on Farms and Ranches
Feeding, riding and interacting with farm animals
Holding weddings in rural settings
Private fishing ponds for visitors
Touring historic farms or plantations

People have become more interested in how their food is produced. They want to meet farmers and processors and talk with them about what goes into food production. For many people who visit farms, especially children, the visit marks the first time they see the source of the food they eat.

It seems like Agritourism is a good fit 'Four Summerton'. The question is - what do we do next? The town and owners of surrounding farms need to work together to grow this local industry. Where do we start? With a local farmers market in downtown Summerton? Participating in SC Agritouism programs and associations? Joining the SC Ag & Art Tour?Agritourism marketing? Signage programs? Web sites? Social media...

To help keep things rolling, check out the following AgriTourism links:

Finally, AgriTourism is a close cousin to EcoTourism. See Summerton SC: Nature & Outdoor Recreation web site to learn more about this emerging industry that is also a perfect fit 'For Summerton'.

Hopefully, y'all are paying attention to the renovation and use of #4 Main Street in downtown Summerton - that's 'Four Summerton'.

5.12.14

Introduction to 'Open Agriculture' Tools and Resources

Collaboration, Open Solutions & Innovation in Agriculture