7. Food as a Component in Destination Marketing

The assumption is often made in the academic literature that just about every destination can identify and market unique assets, thereby achieving a point of difference against competitors. However, as the competition between destinations is increasing this is becoming difficult for destination marketing organisations (DMOs) which face problems in identifying resources that will differentiate their destination from competing places offering similar attributes and benefits. In recent years, an increasing importance of food as a destination marketing tool and a way of achieving uniqueness and difference has been noted. Accordingly, this chapter provides an insight into the use of food in the marketing of a tourist destination at a national level—in this case, England. In particular, content analysis of the Visit England website identifies four dimensions of destination marketing which illustrate how the use of experiential narratives is developed to encourage visitors to become more than passive observers, and therefore actively supports the achievement of competitive advantage for the destination. A question that arises in this chapter is the meaning of “local” food. This is easier to define in rural areas, however becomes more complex in urban places where the “local” is not only difficult to define, but often difficult to make distinctive and unique.