Place-Based Factors and the Performance of Farm-Level Entrepreneurship: A Spatial Interaction Model of Agritourism in the U.S.

Abstract

We apply farm-level data to a two-stage model to explore how three different theories of comparative advantage influence the propensity of a farm or ranch to adopt an agritourism enterprise and the level of economic activity tied to that enterprise. Findings suggest that a county's entrepreneurial spirit and scenic byways increase the propensity to adopt agritourism, but natural endowments and agglomeration are the primary drivers of agritourism economic activity. Results should assist policy makers as well as rural economic development researchers in leveraging community strengths to increase economic activity in the agritourism industry and its surrounding rural economies.