Food and wine tourism on the rise towards billion turnover

For food and wine tourism, the latest assist came in December when Italian cuisine officially became part of Unesco's intangible cultural heritage. All the more reason for foreign tourists to go to the inland areas of the Peninsula in search of specialities and wine cellars. Because in the last three years, one out of every two foreigners can be linked to interest in food and wine, which has fuelled around 132 million days of tourism. If only Italia were able to increase international tourist presences by 5%, according to estimates by SRM, the study centre linked to the Intesa Sanpaolo Group and supported by the Compagnia di San Paolo Foundation, it would generate a billion euro turnover in synergy with other themes. This is what emerges from the report 'When wine meets tourism. Numbers and models of Italian wineries" by Roberta Garibaldi, lecturer at the University of Bergamo and president of Aite-Associazione Italiana Turismo Enogastronomico, in collaboration with SRM presented yesterday at Hospitality, the hospitality exhibition organised by Riva del Garda Fierecongressi.

"The competitiveness of the sector, according to the companies, stems from the encounter between internal commitment and public policies capable of accompanying and amplifying private efforts,' Roberta Garibaldi explains. 'The companies are asking for policies that are predictable, accessible and consistent with the specificities of wine tourism, avoiding discontinuities that risk curbing the propensity to invest. Accessibility in all its forms is also important. There is a demand for more coordinated and strategic governance, capable of creating a system between tourism, agriculture, culture and territorial development'.

In the resorts that have been able to establish themselves as destinations in recent years, the report points out, growth rates in revenues and assets of over 25% are recorded, while in the less structured ones there are wide margins for improvement, linked to the strengthening of internal organisation and a more defined market strategy. For example, each wine and food tourist shows an above-average spending capacity and generates more than 150 euro of added value distributed between agriculture, catering, services and trade, through to culture and crafts. Hence the need for teamwork between wineries, production chains and local services to develop a range of offers and wine tourism experiences in an integrated territorial development project, with lasting benefits beyond the borders of the individual enterprise. In the case of wineries, for example, visits and experiences not only diversify revenue but also increase direct sales by strengthening the direct relationship with consumers.

'Wine tourism is entering an increasingly selective and qualitative growth phase,' reports Salvio Capasso, SRM Centro Studi. 'The results show how economic performance and investment choices contribute to defining highly differentiated business profiles, with very different competitive outcomes.

Globally, wine tourism is now worth USD 46.5 billion, or about EUR 39.1 billion at current exchange rates, and is one of the most dynamic segments of experiential tourism. Europe holds more than half of the market (51%), with France, Italia and Spain as leading countries. Growth prospects are particularly favourable: estimates indicate an average annual increase of 12.9%, a sign of growing interest on the part of travellers for authentic experiences, linked to the territory, production culture and sustainability.