Expanding Colorado’s Tourism Offerings is Topic of Seminar Hosted by Colorado State University

C.J. Mucklow, Colorado State University alumnus and director of Routt County Extension, will speak March 11 about the contributions ranching makes to tourism in Colorado as part of a seminar sponsored by the Western Center for Integrated Resource Management at CSU.

The event will be 8-11:30 a.m. Wednesday, March 11, at the Taylor Conference Center, Agricultural Research, Development and Education Center, 4616 NE Frontage Road in Fort Collins.

The seminar will discuss the opportunities agriculture offers visitors, the economy and the farms and ranches throughout the state, as well as how farmers and ranchers can target and capitalize on Colorado’s agricultural offerings.

Also speaking at the event are Dawn Thilmany McFadden, professor of agricultural and resource economics, and Gary May, rancher and owner of May Farms in Byers. Thilmany McFadden will speak about how communities can better target visitors to help local farms and ranches with everything from fruit picking to horse riding. May will speak about what he learned about agricultural entertainment from building a 10,000-square-foot event center for educational and recreational purposes on his 400-acre farm.

"Agri-tourism offers Colorado’s ranchers and farmers another dimension to their income stream, supplementing their other projects and offering an educational and entertainment service to visitors," said Kraig Peel, the co-director of the Western Center for Integrated Resource Management.

The program is free, but registration is required before March 9 by calling (970) 491-1610.  Additional information is available at http://www.wcirm.colostate.edu/.

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