Permalink : http://hdl.handle.net/2115/53660

Agritourism has been receiving increasing attention as one of the key elements for rural development. Although tourism has been mainly planned and conducted by tourism agencies, there is a new trend called "community-based tourism." This new tourism is run by local people ― for example farmers, food producers and retailers. Agritourism is designed not only to offer good local food and picturesque scenery, but also to inform participants about issues concerned related to agriculture, food and the rural community through interacting with local people. This paper explored a case study of community-based tourism in Hokkaido called mugichen, designed to foster an understanding of agriculture, in particular wheat production, in Hokkaido. We argue that community-based tourism could enhance understanding of agriculture and rural issues such as where and how food comes from.