Today, whilst travelling, visiting fast food franchises instead of local cafés feels almost sacrilegious. Why?
The answer lies in the camera roll. Instagram’s ‘Camera eats first’ phenomena has revolutionised travel ideologies. It has elevated niche travel industries like ‘food tourism’ into mainstream markets and although such tourism is not novel – the scale of its socio-economic impact is.
What is Food Tourism?
The World Food Travel Association defines food tourism as “the act of travelling for a taste of a place in order to get a sense of the place.” It encompasses travel experiences like cooking classes, street food, visits to rustic wineries, experimenting at one-of-a-kind restaurants and food festivals to name a few.
The segment has particularly skyrocketed to popularity amongst millennial and Gen Z travellers. This can be attributed to its major role in safeguarding heritage in a rapidly homogeneous world where travellers crave increasing diversity and originality in their experiences. Additionally, food’s long standing synonymy with emotional bonding and a societal shift towards support for smaller local shops have also promoted such tourism globally.
A significant contributor to this phenomenon is also the booming Social Media indulgence of consumers for trends such as ‘foodstagram’.
Whether it’s drinking espresso at historic cafès like Caffè Greco, dining in at The Fat Duck or simply enjoying Bombay’s Vada Pav – food creates lasting impressions, connections and memories with travel.
Socio-Economic Benefits of Food Tourism
Food contributes to approximately 25% to 35% of an average travellers’ budget.
Strong gastronomic associations to local food have proven to be a major pull factor for tourists as they increasingly associate dining experiences with authenticity and social bonding. Food creates a ‘time oasis’ for travellers to relax, reflect and bond with their surroundings and companions. Cooking classes for example have become a staple for young group travellers. Imagine a late night pizza making class in Rome with your friends, accompanied by the lively atmosphere is a quick recipe for an unforgettable experience.
The possibility of such innovative ways to experience local culture draws millions of tourists annually.
Gastronomic tourism generates various cross-industry employment opportunities. Food is uniquely labour intensive thereby it’s less susceptible to extreme factor substitution and can boost employment rates amongst youth. It especially helps combat high unemployment rates such as Italy’s at 8.2% by creating demand for local jobs such as food tour guides, waiters, chefs amongst other jobs. As employment rises, negative externalities such as crime, homelessness and hysteresis reduce. Even relative poverty rates can fall, which in turn promotes economic welfare for residents.
The Italian countryside, a patron for Eno-tourism (wine tourism) has over 40 million visitors. Wineries, often located in rural areas, they serve as economic engines, generating revenue through wine production, sales, and tourism. Tourist influx boosts local employment for all farmers to winemakers and simultaneously fosters a healthy agricultural industry that aids market operators.
Furthermore, higher localised competition can encourage better, more market-efficient conditions such as allocative efficiency, which has been a crucial concern for the food industry. Currently, the industry generates over 1.3 billion tons of food waste worldwide which approximates to nearly one-third of all food produced globally.
Aside from agriculture, there is higher revenue generation for local artisans as they capitalise on tourism-related enterprises such as homestays, souvenir shops which fast track growth and development as a multiplier effect occurs.
This can be observed in Germany’s Oktoberfest, who’s longstanding association to culture and merriment draws over 6 million visitors annually. This directly generates over €1.2 Billion in touristic revenue for the country.
In addition to providing seasonal employment, the festival also generates long term employment opportunities in planning,organising and managing the festivities. This inevitably leads to higher tax revenue generation, which allows the government to re-invested any present surplus . This is often in the form of improved infrastructure, better public service provision and promoting a more sustainable and diversified local economy.
Negative Impacts of Food Tourism
While food tourism brings economic benefit, it has also raised issues for governments as locals protest over tourism affecting their daily lives.
One of the biggest concerns for locals remains inflationary pressures. Highly touristic metropolitans have high cost of living with landlords raising apartment rents to compensate for the touristic revenue they lose on by leasing. Tourism accounts for over ⅓ rd of the inflation and ‘restaurants-pastry-cafes-cafeterias’ has a large weighting in the price index. The out-of-reach pricing for locals has not only reduced the purchasing power but also has sparked anti-tourism protests in countries like Spain. This protest comes due to the rise of the ‘selfie motivated tourism’ wherein there is an inherent lack of respect and appreciation for the culture.
Food Tourism jeopardises the sustainability of the local food ecosystem and supply chain in small local bites where acclaim can be disruptive.’Paiche’ that opened in Portland, Oregon was originally conceptualised to be a local breakfast-lunch restaurant but its astronomical rise to fame led to the restaurant charging nearly $32 for some dishes. It became unsustainable for locals to eat there altogether. Such high costs are problematic for residents in hubs such as New York and London where there is an affinity to eat out rather than cook at home. Grocery pricing is already scrutinised in the USA and UK and such tourism may add fuel to the fire.
Unsustainability has become a large part of the conversation as culinary tourism’s growth rate is predicted to be 15.2% and be worth $3,515.1 Billion by 2032 whereas agriculture is predicted to grow by only 3.76% in a similar time period. This creates immense pressure on already scarce agricultural resources.
In addition, cultural loss due to mass tourism is concerning. While gourmet travel can be a niche way of experiencing culture, the likelihood of cultural heritage being exploited to sell products is high. Anti-touristic sentiments may lead to reinforcement of stereotypes and constant tourism drives out residents from their communities leading to loss of unique character of a city. Over-commercialisation of food has increased the abandonment of traditional methods in search for quick-fix methods and modification of the authentic dish to cater to the exaggerated expectations of tourists. This has created a litter of tourist restaurants with little cultural integrity.
Policy Maker Response
An estimated 80 billion meals were served to international and domestic tourists in 2019. This has raised concerns due to the large food wastage which is commonly associated with environmental degradation. Food loss and waste are also linked with the challenge of food security. Tackling food loss and waste is one of the concrete actions needed to transform agri-food systems for people, planet and prosperity.
Policies aim to reduce the challenges of food tourism without discouraging it. With this intent in mind, various measures are being currently implemented at a small scale to achieve a desired response
‘Comer paysage ‘is an increasingly common practice which emphasises producers’ efforts to promote artisanal practices and traditional, high-quality, low-yield crops. Instead of giving into modern methods, Tuscan vineyards increasingly use traditional yield methods as it encourages a sustainable and natural approach to their art and allows visitors a true insight into Italian heritage.
There have been various sustainable tourism initiatives, as research increasingly shows that tourist taxes have little to no effect on the volume of tourism. CopenPay is the trailblazer in the sustainable tourism sector. Recently introduced in Copenhagen, it encourages tourists to act sustainably by riding bikes, taking public transportation, or collecting plastic and in turn are treated to free perks such as meals at restaurants, coffee, wine, Danish pastries, museum admission, and extra activity time at leisure centres or cultural workshops.
Bali offers eco-tourism options where tourists participate in traditional rice planting.
Another interesting approach to re-using food wastage comes from sustainable designs. A new eco-friendly resort in Costa Rica uses an architectural design with structures made from locally sourced bamboo and thatched roofs. The resort also incorporates a circular economy approach by composting food waste and using it to fertilise the on-site organic farm.
While there are a wide variety of initiatives, most initiatives require a large capital investment on part of the government and individuals and therefore may take time to take off at a large scale. Education on food has been a frontrunner to combat wastage and incorporate modern techniques without losing cultural essence.
Indian Point of View
Food tourism offers an exciting opportunity for India in particular. Already globally renowned for its flavourful cuisine – the influx of foreign tourists eager to taste authentic ethnic food offers an enticing opportunity for the country’s tourism to boom.
Indian Food already has a strong association to tradition and heritage, a key factor in such tourism. Each region presents a unique blend of history in its food and allows India to expand the 2 billion USD segment.
Various cities such as Goa are a melting pot for international and local tourists and have started hosting food festivals in partnership with the government to draw out crowds. Similarly, street food trails in popular destinations like Mumbai and Delhi can provide unique culinary experiences to incoming tourists. Delhi, in particular, can offer a unique blend of ancient history and food on walking tours which can entice history lovers and foodies alike.
India can easily capitalise on its presently strong association to food to prop up its’ touristic economy and experience the proven benefits of such tourism, especially where rural development is concerned. Marketing via social media can consolidate soft power globally as food enthusiasts eagerly share their experience and invoke a FOMO feeling which can be of major economic gain here.
Conclusion
Food tourism is evolving well beyond its previously small bubble. Its developmental scope divulges far beyond the final presentation on the plate and its proper capitalisation can increase tourism multifold. It can be the wind in India’s sails for its’ international tourism rebranding as food forms an essential aspect of the diverse cultural experiences here.
However, when considering food tourism, the song and dance about sustainability is a necessary hard truth to face. Before making a complete shift to it or if wishing to continue with such tourism, governments must come up with proper solutions to resolve the agricultural crisis which may brew if demand rises beyond its capacity to match the short run supply. Whilst there is considerable progress on this front, it is not yet baked enough to reverse or reduce negative externalities which locals face.
Ultimately, governments face the time-tested dilemma of choosing between sustainable growth or enjoying rapid economic progress. In either scenario, it is conclusive enough to state that food tourism is here to stay and grow without or with intervention.