Scottish Agritourism Conference Welcomes International Agritourism Authorities

Two high-profile, international agritourism leaders, have been announced as speakers at this years’ Scottish Agritourism conference. Early bird tickets for the annual conference are on sale now, with a discounted rate applied until the end of August.  

The conference, now in its fifth year, will take place at its regular venue of Perth Concert Hall on the 18^th and 19^th of November. The one and half day conference is Scotland’s largest annual gathering of agritourism businesses and sector supporters, the 4^th in person conference hosted by the sector body since it was formed in June 2020.

The impressive programme includes sessions covering innovation, the importance of building great teams, tourism sector insights with a focus on food and drink experiences, and the future of agritourism which will be led by the conference’s delegation of fully funded, Agritourism Futures scholars.

A session focusing on International Agritourism will welcome speakers Marijke Dunselman and Pandurang Taware, both eminent agritourism figures in their respective countries of New Zealand and India.

Both speakers have played a fundamental role in developing agritourism in their home sectors and continue to make significant impacts to agricultural landscapes by raising the profile of agritourism as a form of diversification for farmers.

Marijke has worked with farmers for over 26 years and is founder of Agritourism NZ, New Zealand’s national agritourism body. She is responsible for the development and delivery of the New Zealand agritourism monitor farm equivalent and brings a rich, multicultural perspective to her work as well as an eclectic professional background. Marijke also serves as the chair of the Education Committee of the Global Agritourism Network.

Marijke said, “I’m very excited to be coming to the Scottish Agritourism Conference this year, meeting members of the Scottish sector, sharing experiences about agritourism in New Zealand and learning from each other.”

Pandurang Taware is a multi-award winning agritourism leader. A fourth-generation farmer and first-generation entrepreneur, he is known as the ‘Father of Indian agritourism’ and through his efforts to educate and support farmers, has driven significant growth for India’s rural economy over the past 20 years.

The impact of Pandurang’s initiatives have been measured in excess of 60 million Indian rupees for farming families and over 7,000 jobs for women and youths in rural communities.

Pandurang is visiting Scotland for the first time to speak at the conference with an itinerary that includes visits to agritourism in both Scotland and England. He said, “I am so excited to participate in the Scottish Agritourism conference and share and exchange agritourism experiences and knowledge for the betterment of farming communities in our respective nations. The Scottish Agritourism conference is a testament to Scotland's innovative spirit, bringing together farmers, entrepreneurs, and tourism experts to explore the synergy between agriculture and tourism, fostering sustainable growth and enriching rural communities."

In recent years the Scottish Agritourism conference has attracted upwards of 300 delegates who are either operating or considering agritourism, alongside representatives of professional services and the supply chain who work with the agritourism sector in Scotland, local authorities, DMOs, enterprise and other sector bodies.

Earlier this year, it was announced that the World Agritourism Conference will be held in Scotland in 2026. The global conference is expected to attract around 1000 delegates to Aberdeen’s P&J Live conference venue in June 2026, further raising the profile of Scotland’s growing and diverse agritourism sector.

Caroline Millar, Sector Lead for Scottish Agritourism, said, “We are extremely fortunate that the agritourism sector in Scotland is a tight knit network. Everyone is so enthusiastic and supportive and this really makes the Scottish Agritourism conference stand out as an annual highlight and an excellent opportunity to showcase the diversity and growth of Scotland’s agritourism community.

We’re really pleased that both Pandurang and Marijke have agreed to come and speak to our delegates this year. Both are real trailblazers and have been instrumental in shaping agritourism in their own countries and also internationally.  Along with the other session speakers, they will provide a huge amount of transferable information and inspiration to support the development of the Scottish network ahead of the World Agritourism Conference in 2026.”

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