Information for Direct Marketing Operations

Books and Fact Sheets
Links to Other Resources
Navajo Tourism Video Clip
     

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The Western Center for Risk Management Education

 

Risk Management Agency

    In recent years, traditional commodity marketing channels have not provided sufficient returns for many small- and medium-sized farmers to maintain a viable livelihood through only farm activities. Declining profit margins which may not sustain current families' livelihood on the farm is one of the main reasons which prompt operations to consider direct-marketing and agri-tourism activities. Even though direct marketing allows farmers to retain a much higher share of consumer food expenditures, the elements needed to make this production-marketing strategy a success are often not well understood. In part, this is because of their increased complexity as compared to commodity production-marketing systems. Albert Einstein's famous quotation that "Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted," may seem all too appropriate when looking at what it takes to thrive at direct farm marketing and agri-tourism. Traditionally, commodity producers have set goals for high yields and low costs of production in order to be "low cost" producers. However, personality skills, relationships, superb quality and service, willingness to change, and general business savvy were also found to be key for the direct farm marketing and agri-tourism enterprises examined.

The following links and reference materials are targeted to assist in the transition from a traditional commodity market operation to a direct marketing operation. The links provided below are not meant to be an exhaustive list, but rather a good starting point for exploring direct farm marketing options of horticultural products.

Books and Fact Sheets

Direct Farm Marketing and Tourism Handbook
This guide is designed to help farm and ranch operators (and other individuals who grow or process food products) market their products and services directly to the consumer.

Western Profiles of Innovative Agricultural Marketing
This book is not intended to be a step-by-step guide on how to start a direct farm marketing or agri-tourism enterprise, but rather to identify the more subtle and unique factors behind the failures and successes of the enterprises examined and to determine their strategies for meeting future challenges and risks. This publication examines 17 direct farm marketing and agri-tourism enterprises from the West and also includes introductory and summary sections. The end of each section provides contact information for the enterprises examined and for the contributing authors. The Western Extension Marketing Committee is greatly indebted to the willingness and openness of all interviewed participants to share the strategies, successes, and failures of their enterprises and what their plans are for meeting future challenges and risks.
UC Davis Small Farms Center
These fact sheets provide introductory information on Agricultural Tourism Operation topics.

Links to Other Resources

Farm Directory

Western Extension Marketing Committee

Horticultural Business Information Network: Direct Marketing

ATTRA - National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service

Arizona Farmers' Direct Marketing Association

UC Davis Small Farms Center

North American Farmers' Direct Marketing Association

Farmer's Market Online

Local Harvest

Southwest Marketing Network

Cooperative Extension
University of Arizona
Forbes 301, P.O. Box 210036
Tucson, AZ 85721-0036
Phone: (520) 621-7205
Fax: (520) 621-1314
 		http://cals.arizona.edu/extension/riskmanagement
Last Reviewed and Updated: April 10, 2008
Questions/Comments: Ursula Schuch
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