VIDALIA — The LSU AgCenter and the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry are taking the message of agritourism on the road, and this week the road show will stop in Vidalia.

The stop, the second of seven agritourism promotion venues across the state, will be at the Vidalia Conference and Convention Center from 10 a.m. to noon Thursday. The event is free.

Agritourism is defined as a branch of tourism that focuses on offering educational or fun experiences at a working agricultural enterprise such as a ranch or a farm.

Businesses that are considered agritourism can include winery tours, horseback riding, skeet shooting, bird watching or even tours at a working cotton field that allow cotton picking by tour participants.

“(Agritourism) is everything from a you-pick blueberry patch to hunting leases to corn mazes,” LSU AgCenter Community Rural Development Agent Dora Ann Hatch said in a news release. “Agritourism is a broad area that covers entrepreneurial activities outside of production agriculture.”

In the 2008 legislative session, legislation authored by District 21 Rep. Andy Anders was passed that limited the liability of farmers who might want to start an agritourism business, and most of the agenda for Thursday’s meeting focuses on explaining that legislation to farmers.

Included on the agenda are the rules and regulations of agritourism, and how to make an agritourism plan of operation.

The plan of operation is the process by which agritourism businesses identify risks associated with their operation and determine how to limit those risks.

The program will also review the certification process farmers need to complete to limit liability.

For more information, contact Ann Hatch at the LSU AgCenter at 318-927-9654 or go to www.lsuagcenter.com/agritourism.