Travellers and consumers alike are “more obsessed” than ever with everything having to do with food and drink —and interest will continue to increase thanks largely to the role of social media.
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| Travellers continue to be obsessed with food, says WFTA. (Image:Burst) |
This and other findings are in the World Food Travel Association (WFTA)’s new report on the global food and beverage tourism industry. The 62-page report compiled the opinions, suggestions and comments from 71 food and beverage tourism industry experts from 20 countries.
The report also looked into the performance of food and beverage tourism providers, with suggestions on ways to improve, such as by developing or enhancing food and drink activities.
Other findings in the report include:
· Providing a genuinely authentic product or experience is essential. Visitors are increasingly knowledgeable about, and demanding of, authenticity in food/drink products and experiences.
· The need for cultural preservation is urgent, and not limited to cuisine, as other manifestations of culture, such as music, clothing/fashion and architecture are threatened by globalisation.
· Failure to support small food/beverage businesses will result in hastening towards globalisation of the so-called "local" experience, thereby completely negating one of the main reasons to travel for food and drink, as destinations are already beginning to resemble each other more and more.
WFTA says food/drink experiences provided by businesses and destinations often don't match visitor expectations. Businesses need to understand that they are selling not just a food/beverage product, but also an experience. If visitor (customer) expectations are not met, negative word-of-mouth ensues.
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