Commercialization Process for Developing Agritourism: The Use of Commodity Chain Analysis

ABSTRACT

Agritourism, a combination of agriculture and tourism, entails a complex process of commercializing agricultural resources into tourist products. This study utilizes the commodity chain model to outline the stages of commercialization for rural resources and shed light on critical challenges and prospects in agritourism development in Taiwan. The research reveals that agritourism commercialization unfolds across seven distinct phases: planning experiential products, designing service delivery, positioning commodities in the market, marketing and promotion, establishing sales channels, ensuring on-site delivery and quality control, and consumption by visitors within the Production-Exchange-Consumption (PEC) framework. By analyzing the commodity chain of agritourism, we gain comprehensive insights into each stage of resource commercialization and its intricate implications for the roles and influences of various stakeholders. This study contributes to academic discourse on agritourism commercialization and offers recommendations to foster sustainable agritourism experiences.

摘要

農業旅遊結合了農業和觀光，過程不僅涉及將農業資源轉化成為旅遊商品的複雜程序，同時須面對鄉村資源商業化所帶來的種種挑戰。本研究運用商品鏈模型檢視與揭示農業資源商業化的階段歷程，並探究農業旅遊發展與經營的關鍵課題與挑戰。研究指出在「生產-交換-消費」的理論框架下，農業旅遊商業化歷程可分成七個主要階段: 體驗產品的規劃、服務傳遞的設計、商品的市場上架、行銷與推廣、銷售通路、現場的服務傳遞和品質控制、遊客消費。透過農業旅遊商品鏈，研究得以進一步剖析不同利益關係者在各階段的角色和影響，更全面性地洞察鄉村資源在商業化不同階段裡錯綜複雜的作用與影響。研究結果有助於農業旅遊商業化的學術論述，同時針對促進農業旅遊體驗的永續發展提出經營上的建議。

KEYWORDS:

• Agritourism
• commercialization
• production-exchange-consumption
• commodity chain analysis
• Taiwan

關鍵字:

• 農業旅遊
• 商業化
• 生產-交換-消費
• 商品鏈分析
• 台灣

Acknowledgments

This study would not have been possible without the support of panelists who devoted the time necessary to provide thoughtful responses to each round of this research.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This research was funded in part by a research grant (MOST 107-2410-H-259-032) from the National Science and Technology Council, R.O.C. in Taiwan.

Notes on contributors

Tsung-Chiung (Emily) Wu

Tsung-Chiung (Emily) Wu is Professor in the Department of Tourism, Recreation and Leisure Studies at the National Dong Hwa University, Hualien, Taiwan. Her research interests are in agri-tourism and the sustainability and resilience of tourism (E-mail: [email protected]).

Yi-Shan Wang

Yi-Shan Wang is Assistant researcher in the Agricultural Extension Section of the Hulien District Agricultural Research and Extension Station, Ministry of Agriculture, Taiwan. Doctoral candidate in the Department of Tourism, Recreation and Leisure Studies at the National Dong Hwa University, Hualien, Taiwan. His research interests are in agricultural consumer behavior, tribal agritourism and elderly horticultural therapy (E-mail:[email protected]).

Philip Feifan Xie

Philip Feifan Xie is Professor in the Tourism, Hospitality and Event Management, Bowling Green State University, USA. His research interests are in cultural tourism and the morphology of tourism (E-mail: [email protected]).

Chiu-Pin Chen

Chiu-Pin Chen is Doctoral candidate in the Department of Tourism, Recreation and Leisure Studies at the National Dong Hwa University, Hualien, Taiwan. Her research interests are in destination management and tourist behavior (E-mail: [email protected]).