FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Wednesday, May 9, 2007

For more information contact:
Bill Clary

(502) 564-4696

bill.clary@ky.gov

YATES IS KENTUCKY’S NEW AGRITOURISM DIRECTOR

FRANKFORT, Ky. — A Louisville man with an extensive background in sales and marketing is Kentucky’s new agritourism director, Agriculture Commissioner Richie Farmer has announced.

Stephen P. Yates will start May 16 after five years with the Governor’s Office of Agricultural Policy.

“Agritourism is growing rapidly as farmers look for new ways to make money on the farm and tourists look for destinations close to home,” Commissioner Farmer said. “I am pleased to have Stephen Yates on board to serve this important new industry.”

As a project analyst with GOAP, Yates helped the Kentucky Department of Agriculture secure funding for a statewide agritourism coordinator and a feasibility study that assessed the agritourism industry in Kentucky. Yates secured more than $2 million in funding for 22 agritourism projects. He also secured funding for other projects, reviewed grant applications and presented them to the Kentucky Agricultural Development Board for a 29-county area in central Kentucky.

The board administers agriculture’s share of Kentucky’s Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement funds. GOAP is the administrative arm of the board. The board has awarded $236 million in grants for agricultural diversification projects since it was created in 2000.

Yates previously worked for American Red Cross Blood Services, Presentation Solutions of Louisville, United Parcel Service in Louisville, The Commuter Pool of Louisville, and General Electric Appliances.

The state agritourism office is a joint operation of the KDA and the Kentucky Department of Tourism. The director assists Kentucky agritourism business with marketing, business concerns and other issues. The office and the state Agritourism Advisory Council were established by legislation passed in the 2002 General Assembly.

Kentucky has some 200 agritourism destinations. Many of them are listed on the Kentucky Department of Tourism’s Web site. Go to http://www.kentuckytourism.com/interestfinder.htm, click on the Interest Finder, and click on Agritourism.

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