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Policy, Support and Promotion for Food-Related Tourism Initiatives

Summary Increasingly, regional tourism development initiatives are utilizing locally-produced foodstuffs and beverages to: strengthen areas' tourism products; enhance visitors' experiences; and help maintain and enhance the viability of local food production and processing sectors. This paper examines the ways in which food and tourism are being drawn together at a theoretical level by academics, at a strategic level by policy makers, and at an applied level by developers and practitioners. While the marketing philosophy provides a useful framework for the planning and management of food-related tourism initiatives, adopting such an approach is problematic owing to a shortfall in our understanding of consumer behavior with regard to food in the context of leisure and tourism. In the absence of such knowledge, and in the light of the positive economic and social benefits which such initiatives can create, this paper examines the ways in which food-related tourism initiatives are being promoted using the World Wide Web. The research highlights inadequacies in the web-based promotion of food-related tourism initiatives in the UK and suggests that, while this type of tourism is at an early stage in the product life-cycle (in the UK), these shortcomings are also due in part to the fragmented infrastructure for regional tourism development and promotion in the UK. Additionally, practical recommendations are made as regards design factors for the provision of web-based tourism information.