Two couples are flying more than 13,000km to rural Australia to have their wedding photos taken in a golden paddock nestled between a country road and a babbling creek.

Families visiting from India and Pakistan have made the trip to Cornella, a tiny township east of Bendigo in Victoria, to wander through the same field.

Others have travelled from Sydney or Melbourne for the chance to run their hands through blossoms and put their feet in the dirt.

Such is the allure of canola, the green and yellow winter crop getting a new life as a tourist attraction across the country.

Victorian winemaker Brian Spencer saw an opportunity to turn canola into gold when he noticed other farmers asking tourists to stay out of their picturesque paddocks due to damage and biosecurity concerns.

Brian opened the Cornella Canola Walk near his cellar door at Shiraz Republic vineyard, creating pathways through a crop so visitors can amble among the yellow flowers, take photos and connect with the land.

The fourth season of the walk opened in late August.

In previous years, Brian has seen visitor numbers blossom from 700 to 5000 during the six-week flowering period.

International tourists, couples hoping to take romantic photos and city families are among his visitors.

“It’s a very immersive experience, that sense of awe and wonder that people get from being in the midst of it,” Brian said.

“Connection with something real is good for the soul. It makes you slow down, reconnect with the ground and the earth.

“It’s a gift that the country can give to the city.”

While Australia’s canola production amounts to more than $4 billion, the CSIRO estimates agritourism could be worth $18.6 billion annually by 2030.

Producers are increasingly embracing attractions like farm stays, roadside stalls, tours and meet-the-producer events to diversify and secure incomes.

A national agritourism summit in Orange, in central western NSW, in August heard from renowned chef Matt Moran about his gastronomic ventures in the bush and featured tours through orchards and wineries.

Looking to agriculture was the answer for councils hoping to boost tourism in the Riverina, NSW's largest canola-growing region.

Temora, Junee and Coolamon shires joined forces to create a canola trail linking the three heritage towns, also featuring hot air balloon rides over the vast yellow plains.

Their venture is called Hello Yellow, inviting people on “a journey of joy” on the canola trail.

Urban visitors are increasingly expressing interest in knowing where their food comes from, Temora council’s Craig Sinclair said.

“There’s an idyllic, romanticised idea that we have with the countryside and the benefits of country living and being surrounded by nature,” he said.

“It’s that closer proximity to where your food is being produced because ... everything else in society, and in life, is pulling us further and further away from that.”

Those who have tiptoed through canola in Cornella share the same sentiments.

Brian hopes greater exposure to rural life helps bridge the city-country divide.

“Understanding the challenges, the care and the stewardship that’s involved in agriculture ... builds some trust and respect that’s good for our industries,” he said.

“If people have a glass of wine or a chat with the people that made it, or talk to the farmer, that changes things.

“It builds a connection with the country.”

— AAP

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Sunday, 15th January 2023

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