Liability

Liability is usually a top concern of entrepreneurs when weighing the benefit to risk ratio of opening their land for recreational use – and it should be! While landowners should always discuss individualized liability insurance for each of their businesses with a certified insurance provider, it is encouraging to know that there is also a level of legislative protection for agritourism operations in Nebraska.

A key provision of Legislative Bill 329, known as the Nebraska Agritourism Promotion Act, is to “encourage agritourism activities by limiting civil liability of owners of farms, ranches, and other rural land.” Landowners and owners of businesses which have offerings falling under the bill’s definition of agritourism activities may qualify for liability protections under the bill as follows.

82-606.
Participant; owner duties; warning notice; contents.
(1) Nothing in section 82-604 limits any liability of an owner who receives a fee for allowing a participant on the premises if the owner fails to do at least one of the following:
(a) Post and maintain signage containing the warning as described in subsection (2) of this section in a clearly visible and conspicuous location at or near the entrance to the property used for agritourism activities; or
(b) Include the warning as described in subsection (2) of this section in any written contract between the owner of the property and each participant allowed on the premises for a fee. Such warning shall be in a conspicuous location within the contract and be written in not less than twelve-point boldface type.
(2) The warning notice shall read as follows: WARNING - Under Nebraska law, an owner of property, including lands and waters, is not liable for the injury to or death of the participant in agritourism activities or damage to the participant's property resulting from the inherent risks of such activities. Inherent risks include, without limitation, the risk of animals and land and water conditions, the ordinary dangers of structures or equipment ordinarily used in farming or ranching operations, and the potential for you or another participant to act in a negligent manner that may contribute to your own injury or death. You are assuming the risk of participating in the agritourism activities for which you are entering the owner's premises.

A great resource to gain some legal savvy is The National Agricultural Law Center, home to a wealth of information on agritourism law, including major statutes, case law, and research publications. They can also provide free online trainings or workshops to suit your needs. Still have unanswered legal questions? When in doubt, it’s always best to consult a legal professional.

Safety

Even after doing your homework, buying liability insurance, and posting the warning signage in a highly visible location, you can still fall victim to lawsuit for instances of gross negligence. Further protect yourself by integrating appropriate safety strategies into your business. A great source for walkthroughs, checklists, and resources to implement safety best practices is safeagritourism.org. We know there are some things that are simply out of your control as a business owner, like severe weather events for instance. The best thing you can do to protect yourself from repercussions when disaster strikes is to practice preparedness by creating an Agritourism Emergency Management Plan.

Education & Inspiration

Now that we’ve covered liability and safety, let’s turn to some inspiration. Whether attending a conference, or joining an organization of like-minded businesses, it’s never too late to learn something new and network! Staying apprised of current trends and technologies will ensure your marketing strategies and business processes stay relevant and streamlined. Plus, attending workshops is a great way to engage with other like-minded business owners, which can lead to cross marketing opportunities as well as insights into how to grow your business more sustainably by avoiding missteps that others have already learned about the hard way!

Each year, we offer the Agritourism & Adventure Travel Workshop (A&ATW), aimed at helping Nebraskans start, grow, and market their niche tourism endeavors; and the Nebraska Tourism Conference, aimed at educating the tourism industry at large about emerging trends in marketing, tourism research, and funding opportunities. The following are a sampling of additional quality workshops we frequently recommend for agritourism and adventure-based businesses.
Connecting Entrepreneurial Communities (CEC) Conference
Great Plains Symposium
MarkeTech Conference
North American Farmers' Direct Marketing Association (NAFDMA) Convention
National Outdoor Recreation Conference (NORC)

State & Federal Resources

Often the most helpful insight can come through the expertise of another. There are so many organizations that have originated to serve and support various niche aspects of the tourism industry! So why go it alone when you can be part of an organization designed to facilitate valuable knowledge and expertise to business endeavors like yours? A reliable network can pay dividends in helping to elevate your business through expanded marketing and funding opportunities. We have an entire section of our website dedicated to our industry partners (if you're reading this, you've found it!) which includes information on our upcoming events, grant opportunities and more! While by no means a comprehensive list, the following organizations all do amazing work throughout the state of Nebraska and across the U.S. to help people and businesses thrive. Many have consultants and/or funds available by region, so be sure to look up who the service provider is for your area where applicable.
AIANTA
Buy Fresh Buy Local
Center for Rural Affairs
Great Plains Ecotourism Coalition
GROW Nebraska
Nebraska Community Foundation Resources
Nebraska Department of Economic Development
Nebraska Game & Parks Commission Community Resources
Nebraska Environmental Trust
Nebraska Sustainable Agricultural Society
UNL Extension
USDA

Have more questions about agritourism in Nebraska? Contact Graham Jordison, Adventure Travel Specialist, at [email protected].