Asian agritourism: Raising sustainability awareness
6 Nov 20235 min read
Summary
- The Asian agritourism market is expanding rapidly, driven by growing interest in sustainable living and authentic rural experiences across India, Japan and Southeast Asia. Tourists engage in activities like harvesting rice, visiting organic farms and staying in rural communities, which strengthens the connection between producer and consumer.
- The sector also enhances supply-chain visibility and direct-to-consumer sales by enabling farm owners to adopt business-to-consumer (B2C) models, thus shortening the value chain and providing fresh produce with a storytelling edge. Visitors gain awareness of natural-farming, permaculture and organic practices, while producers secure higher margins and more engaged customers.
- Agritourism creates a triple win: consumers get immersive, educational experiences; rural communities preserve culture and generate income; and farm owners diversify earnings and embed sustainability in operations. The article illustrates how this growing model aligns rural livelihoods, environmental stewardship and commerce.
Countries like India, Japan, and China have become agritourism hubs, attracting domestic and international tourists in agritourism farm stays. According to an analysis, the global agritourism or agrotourism market can reach $141 billion by 2023.
The unique blend of agriculture and tourism offers many opportunities to educate and raise awareness about sustainable farming practices. In particular, organic agriculture in Asia offers consumers the chance to directly buy fresh produce from farmers.
In this sense, agritourism connects the consumer to farm owners. It provides broader leeway for better supply chain management (SCM) through the direct establishment of business rapport and the rendering of consumers’ first-hand experiences on natural farming.
“
“FT (Farmer-Tourist) refers to the relationship in which local farmers supply their agri-products directly to tourists or they do businesses on their own farms based on tourism,” Saut Moeun and Masaki Yamada shared in their research at the International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development.
Agriculture SCM and sustainability in Asia
The SCM is usually ushered by farmers, entrepreneurs, and various concerned institutions or authorities. Depending on market size, reaching out to consumers renders a stringent effort that could be exhaustive.
Mainly, agritourism, is a fine example of an initiative that makes use of the “Business to Consumer (B2C) Marketing Model.” Wherein, the farmers or farm owners directly tap their target market. In this sense, farm tourism caters to big, mid-sized, and small-scale farms.
A lasting impact in agriculture and tourism
They can even witness pesticide-free cultivation and learn how organic practices benefit the environment and human health.
Members Only Content
To read the full article and access exclusive content, please login or register as a member.
Member Benefits:
- • Full access to all articles
- • Exclusive industry insights
- • Apply Supply Chain jobs in asia