BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) — The High Desert Food Trail, created by the High Desert Food and Farm Alliance in collaboration with Travel Oregon and Visit Central Oregon as part of the Oregon Food Trails program, is a self-guided tour of Central Oregon's farms, restaurants, breweries and cuisines, offering a taste of the region and a fascinating, unique farm-to-table experience.
Applications for the High Desert Food Trail's third round are now being accepted at hdffa.org/hdft-application .
The High Desert Food Trail invites visitors and locals to experience the region's unique culinary and agritourism attractions. The trail will feature up to 50 businesses, including farms, ranches, restaurants, farmers markets, craft food and beverage producers, events and lodging. All of these stops along the way help expose trail visitors to the High Desert's stunning landscapes, artisanal craft and resilient agriculture.
HDFFA and Visit Central Oregon continually promote businesses along the trail through influencer tours and feature stories from local bloggers, sponsored advertising on Oregon Public Broadcasting that reached nearly 330,000 listeners, two-minute promotional itinerary videos from professional videographers, a partnership with Bend Electric Bikes to create routes in Bend, Sisters and Redmond (with more on the way), distribution of 25,000 brochures per year across the state, paid social media campaigns, workshops and co-promotions with Travel Oregon and HDFFA. Ongoing creative promotional efforts are expected to reach a broad audience in 2024 and beyond.
The High Desert Food Trail is available in English and Spanish.
The High Desert Food Trail is a way for local businesses to better connect with the local food economy and the people involved in sourcing and serving local goods. When asked about their experience as a business on the High Desert Food Trail, Adrienne Baumann, owner of Legend Cider Co., said they were excited to share their craft beverages with visitors and local residents and collaborate with other Central Oregon businesses.
“Joining HDFT has been a great experience for Legend Cider Co. We are honored to be able to rub shoulders with other great small businesses and are excited to offer our guests a curated list of great spots to find amazing local products. HDFT ensures they won't have to think twice the next time they're looking for that special local product.” Apply now. Visit hdffa.org/hdft-application for application criteria for farms, eateries and other categories.
The deadline to apply to be featured in the 2024-25 brochure is June 10, 2024. The listing fee is $25 for current HDFFA partners and $50 for non-partners. Learn more about becoming an HDFFA partner here and High Desert Food Trail member benefits here.
