Local Cuisine and tourism

8/12/2019 Local Cuisine and tourism

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LINKING TRADITIONAL CUISINE AND TOURISM

Prof. Dr. Georgi L. Georgiev, Dr. Ilinka S. Terziyska

Abstract: Gastronomy on the whole and traditional cuisine in particular play animportant role in tourism in at least three aspects to enrich destination image, to increasecustomer satisfaction (food quality is a major factor in this respect), and finally, food and winecan be a main driver for tourism, thus turning into attraction in their own right. This paperdiscusses the relationship between local food and tourism and how destinations can benefit

from their culinary heritage.

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Key words: traditional food, cultural heritage, tourism

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INTRODUCTIONSince it appeared as a distinct product category in the 80s of last century, cultural

tourism has gone through several stages in both supply and demand perspective. The initialinterest in the symbolic cultural attractions and world capitals resulted in a phenomenonwhich Richards called serial reproduction of culture or in other words, a practice associatedwith direct recreation (mimicking) of successful models, often associated with a large amountof expenses. The changing nature of tourism demand, however, and particularly in culturaltourism is at variance with this trend. Increasingly, the focus is on personalized touristexperience, authentic atmosphere, specific character of the place visited, with predominanceof intangible elements of cultural offerings (traditions, way of life) over the tangible ones.

Over the past decade tourism businesses have attempted to meet this new demand by focusingon local products that have the potential to become a unique selling proposition (USP). Atypical example is Italy, which has been developing very successfully as a gourmetdestination, relying mainly on the local specifics of traditional cuisine and lifestyle; manydeveloping countries also focus their tourism policy on local culture, thus giving rise to the socalled ethno tourism.

Traditional cuisine is relatively easy to define a coherent tradition of food preparation that rises from the daily lives and kitchens of a people over an extended period ina specific region of a country, or a specific country, and which, when localized, has notabledistinctions from the cuisine of the country as a whole. 1 Drawing from this definition, the

1 The American Food Revolutions: Cuisines in America (n.d.). Retrieved on 24.12.2013http://www.eldrbarry.net/hatr/eldrcuis.htm
http://www.eldrbarry.net/hatr/eldrcuis.htmhttp://www.eldrbarry.net/hatr/eldrcuis.htmhttp://www.eldrbarry.net/hatr/eldrcuis.htm


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concept seems to be based on three main pillars: sustainable continuity in time, rootedness inthe everyday life of a community, and distinctiveness. The term is often used interchangeablywith local food, though the latter rather focuses on origin of produce, usually limited in termsof geographical distance (e.g. grown or raised within 50 km) or administratively (producedwithin the boundaries of the same administrative unit, usually a district)

SAFEGUARDING TRADITIONAL CUISINE AND LOCAL PRODUCTS

Besides the tourism business, a number of international organizations haveacknowledged the importance of intangible heritage and have taken steps towards its

protection. The most important document in this respect is the Convention for theSafeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO adopted in 2003, which is nowratified by 157 member states and includes 282 elements of intangible cultural heritage.According to this convention,

The intangible cultural heritage means the practices,representations, expressions, knowledge, skills as well as theinstruments, objects, artefacts and cultural spaces associated therewith that communities, groups and, in some cases, individuals recognize as partof their cultural heritage. This intangible cultural heritage, transmitted

from generation to generation, is constantly recreated by communities and groups in response to their environment, their interaction with nature andtheir history, and provides them with a sense of identity and continuity,thus promoting respect for cultural diversity and human creativity. 2

One of the important important clarifications in the Convention is that heritage is seen

as "living culture", i.e. its scope covers only practices and phenomena that are still vital today;those who have vanished are regarded as "cultural history". Furthermore, the criteria forinscription (as opposed to tangible heritage) do not include requirements for outstandinguniversal value and unique character.

oral traditions and expressions, including language as a vehicle of theintangible cultural heritage;

performing arts; social practices, rituals and festive events; knowledge and practices concerning nature and the universe; traditional craftsmanship.

Traditional cuisine is not present as a separate category. This does not however meanthat it is not recognized as cultural heritage there are many instances of food and culinary

practices and traditions which were inscribed in the list: Viennese Coffee House Culture;Gingerbread from northern Croatia (Licitar), Georgian winemaking in Kvevri; TheMediterranean diet; Washoku, traditional dietary cultures of the Japanese, notably for thecelebration of New Year; Traditional Mexican cuisine - ancestral, ongoing communityculture, the Michoacn paradigm; Turkish coffee culture and tradition. UNESCO does notspecify the category (see above mentioned list) into which traditional cuisine falls; in the

2 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (2003) retrieved on 23.12.2013http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/convention
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_cuisinehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexican_cuisinehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michoac%C3%A1nhttp://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/conventionhttp://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/conventionhttp://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/conventionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michoac%C3%A1nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexican_cuisinehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_cuisine


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Bulgarian national nomenclature of living human treasures, on the other hand, it is included inthe category of traditional crafts and home-made products.

Another organization which plays a major role in safeguarding local cuisine is SlowFood. The movement was started by Carlo Petrini and a group of activists as a reaction

against fast food, triggered by the intended opening of MacDonalds at the Spanish Steps inRome. The official foundation followed about three years later in 1989 in Paris. The initialaim of Slow Food was to defend regional traditions, good food, gastronomic pleasure and aslow pace of life3. Gradually, the movement expanded into an impressive network with a

broad range of activities starting from local food festivals and fairs (the Terra Madrenetwork), through food and taste education, to defending biodiversity by the establishment ofthe Ark of Taste. These are, of course only a few of the initiatives of Slow Food, which nowincludes members from over 160 countries, organized in more than 1,300 local structures(convivia).

The Ark of Taste is one of the most important Slow Food initiatives aimed at

safeguarding local products and culinary traditions. It is an inventory of endangered small-scale quality food products, which may include domestic species ( both plants and animal breeds), wild species (only if tied to traditional methods of harvesting, processing and uses)and processed products 4. 11 such products from Bulgaria are included in the list: SmilyanBeans, Banichan onion, Breznitsa maize coucous, Chiroz, Kurtovka apple, Lencho white bean, Lyuto, Osolen svinski but (cured pigs hind leg), Strandzhanska baba, Strandzhasausages, Pickled cherries from Varna and Dobrich. In 1999, the Ark of Taste wassupplemented with the establishment of the first Presidia a form of intervention aimed at theeffective safeguarding and promotion of endangered foods, which proved to be very effectivein social and economic aspects. The activity of Presidia is organized into four main stagesand types of activities:

1. Looks for local producers, defines the goals of the Presidium, creates a workinggroup for its establishment.

2. Collects information in order to complete the production protocol;

3. Assist manufacturers in creating an association and brand building;

4. Promotes the products of the Presidium to potential customers.

Presently, there are four acting Presidia in Bulgaria Karakachan Sheep, Meurche (ornafpavok), Smilyan beans, and Cherni Vit green cheese.

The Karakachan sheep is an indigenous breed, the most typical and most primitiverepresentative of the tzakel coarse wool sheep in Bulgaria in Bulgaria. By the end of the1950s it had been bred by Karakachans and Aromanians (ancient Bulgarian ethnic groups)who practiced nomadic sheepbreeding. Due to the thoughtless policy of the Bulgariangovernment in the years that followed the number of Karakachan sheep fell dramatically from 500 000 in the beginning of the twentieth century to no more than 9000 in 2013, mostof them with questionable purity. 5 The breed is appreciated because of the high quality of the

3 Our history. Slowfood.com (n.d.) Retrieved on 26.12.2013 http://www.slowfood.com/international/7/history 4 The Ark of Taste. Essedra.com (n.d.) Retrieved on 26.12.2013 http://www.essedra.com/biodiversity/the-ark-of-

taste/?select_nazione=BG#map 5 Karakachan sheep. Slowfoodfoundation.com (n.d.) Retrieved on 29.12.2013http://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/presidia/details/1336/karakachan-sheep
http://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/pagine/eng/content.lasso?-id_pg=211http://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/pagine/eng/content.lasso?-id_pg=209http://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/pagine/eng/content.lasso?-id_pg=207http://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/pagine/eng/content.lasso?-id_pg=207http://www.slowfood.com/international/7/historyhttp://www.slowfood.com/international/7/historyhttp://www.slowfood.com/international/7/historyhttp://www.essedra.com/biodiversity/the-ark-of-taste/?select_nazione=BG#maphttp://www.essedra.com/biodiversity/the-ark-of-taste/?select_nazione=BG#maphttp://www.essedra.com/biodiversity/the-ark-of-taste/?select_nazione=BG#maphttp://www.essedra.com/biodiversity/the-ark-of-taste/?select_nazione=BG#maphttp://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/presidia/details/1336/karakachan-sheephttp://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/presidia/details/1336/karakachan-sheephttp://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/presidia/details/1336/karakachan-sheephttp://www.essedra.com/biodiversity/the-ark-of-taste/?select_nazione=BG#maphttp://www.essedra.com/biodiversity/the-ark-of-taste/?select_nazione=BG#maphttp://www.slowfood.com/international/7/historyhttp://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/pagine/eng/content.lasso?-id_pg=207http://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/pagine/eng/content.lasso?-id_pg=209http://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/pagine/eng/content.lasso?-id_pg=211


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dairy products made from the milk and the attractive long fleece. The best preserved flock ofKarakachan sheep is kept near the village of Vlahi, in the Centre for Rare Breeds, along withthe Karakachan dog, the Karakachan horse and the Kalofer goat.

The Meurche , or nafpavok, is cured meat made in the region of Bansko and Razlog (the

Presidium is registered at the village of Gorno Draglishte), which is encased in a pigs bladderand and hung to dry, the harsh winter weather making it possible do this without smoking. Inthe warmer spring and summer months it is preserved in ashes. Due to the laborious processof the traditional technology it is almost extinct and is presently made only at home in adecreasingly small number of households.

The Smilyan beans is produced in limited quantity along the upper Arda valley inSmilyan and the nearby villages. It is grown in a traditional way, combining it with potatoesand maize, which allows using only natural fertilizers. The main factors contributing to itsspecific qualities are the higher humidity and lack of high day temperatures. Attempts to growit elsewhere have proved unsuccessful 6. A lot of traditional meals in the region are based on

this variety of beans, including trahana (stew of beans and corn), bean stew in a pumpkin, andvarious salads.The Green Cheese from Cherni Vit is unique for the Balkans, as it is very different

from the common feta type of cheese typical for the Balkans. Actually it is a modification ofwhite sheep's cheese, but the mode of aging and the specific climatic conditions have led toturning it into mold cheese. It is made by shepherds in summer months and stored in wooden

barrels. Gradually, the brine drains through the pores of the wood, leaving the cheese dry. Inlate summer it is taken down at home and stored in the basement at a constant humidity and atemperature of about 10-12 C. At the opening the cheese comes into contact with moist airand cool, and spontaneously covers with blue-green mold.

THE RELATION BETWEEN FOOD AND TOURISM

In the face of increasing competition, tourism businesses and destinations should puteven more efforts in maintaining increasing their market share 7. A number of studies reportthe significance of food in tourism. It is often ranked first in visitor spending 8; in a NewZealand survey dining out when on holiday was identified as the most important activity bymore than half of the respondents 9.

Gastronomy on the whole and traditional cuisine in particular play an important role intourism in at least three aspects to enrich destination image, to increase customersatisfaction (food quality is a major factor in this respect), and finally, food and wine can be amain driver for tourism, thus turning into attraction in their own right. The latter forms the

6 Krasteva, L., Tsvetelina Stoilova, Kana Varbanova and Stefan Neykov (2009) Bulgarian Landrace Inventory Significance and Use), in European landraces: on-land conservation, management and use , M. Vetelainen, V.

Negri and N. Maxted (Eds), Bioversity International 7 Kyurova, V. (2013) Marketing research of consumer behavior in tourism, in the proceedings of Culturalcorridor Via Diagonalis Cultural tourism without boundaries, 03.10.2013 06.10.2013, Sofia (BULGARIA) Belgrade (SERBIA)8 Wolf, E. (2006). Culinary tourism: The hidden harvest. Iowa: Kendall HuntPublishing.9 Statistics New Zealand (2007) Tourism Satellite Account (TSA). Retrieved

27/10/2007 from http://www2.stats.govt.nz/domino/external/web/commprofiles.nsf/findinfobtarea/024-ta


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basis of a distinct type of tourism known as food tourism, gastronomic tourism, culinarytourism or gourmet tourism.

Traditional food and destination image

Destination image is one of the main factors which influence the decision-making process when choosing a destination 10. In marketing context, image is often linked toconsumer behavior and the literature abounds with attempts to clarify the image formation

process, the factors that underlie it and its components (examples include Baloglu 11 , Gallarzaet al 12, etc.). In destination image measuring studies, different food/cuisine is one of mostfrequently used attributes, along with scenery, hospitality, price rates, entertainment andshopping facilities 13.

In their seminal work on the nature and measurement of destination image Echtner andRitchie argue it should be envisioned as consisting of two main components; those that areattribute based and those that are holistic .14 In addition, they claim that each of these twocomponents may have functional (tangible) and psychological (abstract) characteristics (fig.1).

Figure 1. Dimensions of destination image

10 Kye-Sung Chon, (1990) "The role of destination image in tourism: A review and discussion", TourismReview, Vol. 45 Iss: 2, pp.2 - 911 Baloglu, S. & K. McKleary (1999) A model of destination image formation, Annals of Tourism Research,Volume 26, Issue 4, October 1999, Pages 868 897 12 Martina . allarza, rene il Saura, ayd e Calder n arc a (2002) Destination image: Towards aConceptual Framework , Annals of Tourism Research, Volume 29, Issue 1, January 2002, Pages 56 7813 Jenkins, O. (1999) Understanding and Measuring Tourist Destination mages, NTERNAT ONALJOURNAL OF TOURISM RESEARCH 1, 1-15 (1999), p.1014 Echtner, C. and J.R.B. Ritchie (2003) The meaning and measurement of destination image,THE JOURNALOF TOURISM STUDIES Vol. 14, No. 1, MAY '03 37

Functional characteristics

Psychological characteristics

Attributes Holistic

A lot of museumsHigh price ratesLuxurious accommodation

Mental picture of physicalcharacteristics(e.g. mountainous)

Friendly people

Different cuisine

General feeling /atmosphere (e.g. exotic,gourmet destination)

common

unique


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Source: Echtner, C. and J .R. B. Ritchie (2003) The meaning and measurement ofdestination image, THE JOURNAL OF TOURISM STUDIES Vol. 14, No. 1, MAY '03 37

Besides the above mentioned perception of the image on the one hand as a set of

attributes, and on the other - a holistic view, which can in turn be divided according to theirfunctional and psychological characteristics, Ehtner and Ritchie state that there is a thirddimension - degree of uniqueness. To what extent the image of a destination has this featurevaries within a continuum whose two extremes are 'common' and unique .

Traditional foods have a substantial part in this continuum, and may fall into at least twoquadrants. On the one hand, the perception of tourists of different food offered in thedestination forms part of the image characteristics of a psychological nature. It is, however,also possible that the overall perception of the destination be formed on the availability ofunique cuisine, in which case we are talking about a gourmet destination.

Image formation is a cognitive process, which, according to Gunn, goes through sevenstages: 15:

1. Accumulation of mental images about holiday experiences2. Modification of those images under the influence of additional information3. Decision to travel4. Travel to the destination5. Participation at the destination6. Return home7. Modification of images based on the vacation experience.

The tourism industry has a negligible influence on the formation of so-called organicimage that is created in the first phase as a result of a huge number of diverse sources ofinformation, conversations with family and friends, media, movies, books, training coursesand more. In the second step, however, is induced image, i.e. one that is consciously guided

by tourist brochures, tourist websites, tourist guides, information from travel agents and otherspecialized informative and promotional materials. It is at this stage that marketers can mostsuccessfully affect the image of a destination, by including traditional cuisine as part of themessage . Particularly successful tool in this respect are the pictures as they can be used in atleast four different ways 16:

Complementary Food is used as appealing eye-catcher. nventory food images are central. Superficial food is not in the focus of the images portrayed. Disconnected The food images are not related to the message given.To summarize, traditional cuisine can be used for destination branding both as

itsprincipal element, and as a complementary one to increase its attractiveness by enrichingthe feeling of authenticity.

Food tourism

One of the alternative forms of tourism food tourism, is gaining increasing popularity.The search for authentic traditional cuisine is often explained by nostalgia, feeling of

15 Gunn, C. (1988). Vacationscapes: Designing tourist regions. N e w York: Van Nostrand Reinhold.16 Hjalager, A., & Corigliano, M. A. (2000). Food for tourists Determinants of an image. International Journal

of Tourism Research, 2(4), 229-306


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insecurity in a quickly changing world, interest in heritage 17. Gourmet travels are alsoassociated with high social status and prestige.

One of the most popular definitions of food tourism says that:

food tourism is an experiential trip to a gastronomic region, forrecreational or entertainment purposes, which includes visits to primary and

secondary producers of food, gastronomic festivals , food fairs, events, farmersmarkets, cooking shows and demonstrations, tastings of quality food products orany tourism activity related to food. 18

The same document further emphasizes the importance of travel motivation,highlighting that the journey, except with culinary specialties and traditions, is related to thedesire to enrich ones knowledge aboutthe local way of life. One of the schemes that mostclearly represent the wide range of food tourism and actually make a distinction between theterms which are often used interchangeably is that of Hall (fig. 2)

Figure 2: Forms of food tourism

Source: Adapted from: all, C. M. (2010) The Advantages and Disadvantages ofDeveloping Cuisine, Food andTourism Relationships: Internationaland Local Perspectives ,

presentation in KOREAN CUISINE IN TOURISM: INTERNATIONAL AND LOCALPERSPECTIVE8-10 December 2010, Jeonju, Republic of Korea

Gourmet tourism is characterized by very high interest in food and culinary experiencesare central. It may include simply travelling to a destination because of its food offering fortasting, or involvement in cooking courses. Culinary tourism is to a great extent motivated byfood, but only some of the activities are related to local cuisine. Food is to a smaller degree amotivator in rural or urban tourism. The arches show the predominance of tourist with lowerinterest in tourism over highly interested ones.

17 Richards, G. (2002 ) astronomy: an essential ingredient in tourism production and consumption?, inTourism and Gastronomy, Routledge

18 Global report on food tourism, UNWTO (2012) Retrieved on 24.12.2013http://dtxtq4w60xqpw.cloudfront.net/sites/all/files/pdf/food_tourism_ok.pdf

Low interestHigh interest

Gourmet tourism

Culinary tourism

Rural / urban tourism

i
http://dtxtq4w60xqpw.cloudfront.net/sites/all/files/pdf/food_tourism_ok.pdfhttp://dtxtq4w60xqpw.cloudfront.net/sites/all/files/pdf/food_tourism_ok.pdfhttp://dtxtq4w60xqpw.cloudfront.net/sites/all/files/pdf/food_tourism_ok.pdf


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CONCLUSION

Traditional food has a great potential for increasing destination attractiveness. This isespecially true for rural areas, which have preserved their culinary heritage. To be successfulany strategy should consider the differences in motivation of food tourists and form its

offering in accordance with tourist needs and preferences.

REFERENCES:

Baloglu, S. & K. McKleary 1999. A model of destination image formation, Annals ofTourism Research, Volume 26, Issue 4, October 1999, Pages 868 897

Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (2003) retrieved on23.12.2013 http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/convention

Echtner, C. and J.R.B. Ritchie 2003. The meaning and measurement of destination

image,THE JOURNAL OF TOURISM STUDIES Vol. 14, No. 1, MAY '03 37Global report on food tourism, UNWTO 2012. Retrieved on 24.12.2013http://dtxtq4w60xqpw.cloudfront.net/sites/all/files/pdf/food_tourism_ok.pdf

Gunn, C. (1988). Vacationscapes: Designing tourist regions. N e w York: Van NostrandReinhold.

Hjalager, A., & Corigliano, M. A. 2000. Food for tourists Determinants of an image.International Journal of Tourism Research, 2(4), 229-306

Jenkins, O. 1999. Understanding and Measuring Tourist Destination mages,INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TOURISM RESEARCH 1, 1-15 (1999), p.10

Karakachan sheep. Slowfoodfoundation.com (n.d.) Retrieved on 29.12.2013 http://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/presidia/details/1336/karakachan-sheep

Krasteva, L., Tsvetelina Stoilova, Kana Varbanova and Stefan Neykov 2009. BulgarianLandrace Inventory Significance and Use), in European landraces: on-land conservation,management and use , M. Vetelainen, V. Negri and N. Maxted (Eds), Bioversity InternationalPublishing.

Kye-Sung Chon 1990. "The role of destination image in tourism: A review anddiscussion", Tourism Review, Vol. 45 Iss: 2, pp.2 9

Kyurova, V. (2013) Marketing research of consumer behavior in tourism, in the proceedings of Cultural corridor Via Diagonalis Cultural tourism without boundaries,03.10.2013 06.10.2013, Sofia (BULGARIA) Belgrade (SERBIA)

Martina G. Gallarza, Irene Gil Saura, Hayde Calder n arc a 2002. Destinationimage: Towards a Conceptual Framework , Annals of Tourism Research, Volume 29, Issue 1,January 2002, Pages 56 78

Our history. Slowfood.com, n.d. Retrieved on 26.12.2013 fromhttp://www.slowfood.com/international/7/history

Richards, G. 2002. astronomy: an essential ingredient in tourism production andconsumption?, in Tourism and astronomy, Routledge

Statistics New Zealand 2007. Tourism Satellite Account (TSA). Retrieved 27/10/2007from http://www2.stats.govt.nz/domino/external/web/commprofiles.nsf/findinfobtar

The American Food Revolutions: Cuisines in America (n.d.). Retrieved on 24.12.2013http://www.eldrbarry.net/hatr/eldrcuis.htm

The Ark of Taste. Essedra.com n.d. Retrieved on 26.12.2013

http://www.essedra.com/biodiversity/the-ark-of-taste/?select_nazione=BG#map Wolf, E. 2006. Culinary tourism: The hidden harvest. Iowa: Kendall Hunt
http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/conventionhttp://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/conventionhttp://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/conventionhttp://dtxtq4w60xqpw.cloudfront.net/sites/all/files/pdf/food_tourism_ok.pdfhttp://dtxtq4w60xqpw.cloudfront.net/sites/all/files/pdf/food_tourism_ok.pdfhttp://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/presidia/details/1336/karakachan-sheephttp://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/presidia/details/1336/karakachan-sheephttp://www.slowfood.com/international/7/historyhttp://www.slowfood.com/international/7/historyhttp://www.eldrbarry.net/hatr/eldrcuis.htmhttp://www.eldrbarry.net/hatr/eldrcuis.htmhttp://www.essedra.com/biodiversity/the-ark-of-taste/?select_nazione=BG#maphttp://www.essedra.com/biodiversity/the-ark-of-taste/?select_nazione=BG#maphttp://www.essedra.com/biodiversity/the-ark-of-taste/?select_nazione=BG#maphttp://www.eldrbarry.net/hatr/eldrcuis.htmhttp://www.slowfood.com/international/7/historyhttp://www.slowfoodfoundation.com/presidia/details/1336/karakachan-sheephttp://dtxtq4w60xqpw.cloudfront.net/sites/all/files/pdf/food_tourism_ok.pdfhttp://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/convention


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Contact details:Prof. Dr. Georgi Georgiev [email protected] Ilinka Terziyska [email protected]
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]:[email protected]

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Local Cuisine and tourism