Autumn activity for ATR
Agricultural Tours Riverina (ATR) has been involved in a number of projects in recent weeks, and the busy period is set to continue for some time yet.

The 2022 rice harvest, near Leeton NSW.
Domestic Tours
As COVID restrictions fade away more Australians are taking opportunities to see their own regional areas. During April we conducted two day-long tours focusing on various aspects of Riverina agriculture. Groups came from the Wodonga region of Victoria and a regional NSW secondary school.
Also during April we “stepped aboard” four coaches to provide guided tours of the Leeton township and surrounding rural districts, and conducted four short (two hour) tours for FIT travelers interested to know a little more about Leeton and nearby rural industries. We also conducted a tour extending over several hours for a filming venture – more about that below.
International Enquiries
We are currently working on plans for six international tours. Four are from India, and focus on dairying, cotton, rural product market de-regulation and rural product quality management.
The prospect of market de-regulation is a controversial topic in Indian agriculture and while most Australian rural markets were deregulated some time ago, many Australian farmers consider the benefits remain debatable.
The two remaining international tours being worked on are from Japan (farm labour training) and North America (retired farmers on a part holiday/part study tour).

A 2022 cotton crop near flowering at Leeton NSW.
Tourism markets
ATR participated in ATEC’s B2B virtual marketplace in April and will be attending ATE’22 in Sydney in May.
We have been gratified by the number of international travel agents requesting interviews with us. At 29 April, 67 of the possible 75 face-to-face appointment times have been filled, and three quarters of those appointments were requested by buyers.
ATR occupies a niche position in the broader tourism industry and it is great news that more and more buyers in the market are pursuing commercial opportunities beyond purely recreational tourism.

Citrus packing shed at Merungle Hill, near Leeton NSW.
Destination NSW Famil
Immediately following ATE’22 face-to-face, ATR will contribute to a famil of Riverina tour sites being arranged by DNSW. Twenty travel agents from various east and south Asian countries will spend a couple of days in the region.
ATR’s contribution is of course related to agritourism – we have arranged a visit to a citrus orchard and giant packing shed that sends fruit to many of the countries represented in the famil touring group. We have even arranged to distract the farmer so members of the famil group have an opportunity to steal some citrus to take away with them. (Don’t tell anyone!)