Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Once tourists started venturing overseas they were exposed to strange
and exotic foods. Initially tourists wanted to take their familiar food with
them and visitors can still see English 'fish and chip' shops across the
Mediterranean beach resorts that serve traditional British travellers. Slowly
tourists started to experiment with local dishes and as a result gained confi-
dence in developing their own culinary adventures. Tourists are now trav-
elling to more obscure places and eating more obscure foods, many of them
local dishes they had never tried before.
This also meant consumers wanted to explore and discover more of what
was in their own back yard and as a result local food tourism has grown dra-
matically over recent years.
Within most western societies, the majority of consumers today
have become more removed from the farmer and from nature. This is a
trend that is accelerating as urban living becomes more popular. There
are many city people today who have no idea where their food comes
from and assume that it is manufactured rather than grown or raised.
At the same time there are an increasing number of urban dwellers who
want to reconnect with the farm and the farmer and want to know
more about the journey their food takes before it reaches them. They
have become suspicious of the 'long food chain' and want to have more
control over their own food journey.
The start of this century saw the rapid evolution of the culinary
tourist. These culinary-minded tourists evolved because of a number of
reasons:
•
A curiosity to discover new foods due to their exposure to new and
exotic foods and cooking techniques when on vacation or watching TV
programmes.
•
A more health-aware consumer due to a concern with what is happening
to food production within the 'long food chain' and how that may affect
their health. Many consumers have strong opinions on GM (genetically
modified) food and the long-term effect it could potentially have on their
health.
•
An innate need to connect more closely with the rural community due to
the increasing need to escape an urban environment that in many cities
is getting more crowded and more polluted.
•
The emergence of farmers' markets, farm shops and culinary tourist attrac-
tions as a new offer to tourists, mainly in rural areas close to the consumer's
home.
•
Awareness of 'big' retailers dominating the marketplace and controlling
farming along with a clearer understanding of 'factory' farming prac-
tices and consumers questioning whether this is the right way forward
for society.
•
Food has become fashionable and trendy for all generations. A study of
the local bookshop and the amount of space dedicated to food-related
topics will indicate the strength of this trend.
•
The emergence of celebrity chefs on cooking programmes on television.
