State's food and wine to feature in national tourism campaign
Tasmania's world-class culinary scene is set to take centre stage in a new international Tourism Australia campaign aimed at selling the virtues of the nation's food and wine industries overseas.
The island's most picturesque locations, such as the Freycinet Peninsula, as well as its top-quality seafood, cheeses, wines and truffles will feature high on the national menu in the new campaign, Restaurant Australia, to be launched in international markets early next year.
It comes as Tasmanian tourism celebrates a surge in visitation to the state, with more than a million tourists arriving on the island in the past year, delivering a $1.5 billion boost to the economy.
Tasmania's produce, such as freshly shucked Freycinet oysters, will feature as part of the international Restaurant Australia campaign.
"There is a growing global appetite, literally, for food and wine as part of the travel experience and Australia has all the right ingredients to capitalise on this opportunity with the finest array of produce served in the most stunning locations in the world," Tourism Australia managing director Andrew McEvoy said.
"Our challenge is that for people who have never visited Australia, only 26 per cent associate the destination with a good food and wine offering. For those who have visited though, Australia is ranked second for its food and wine experiences after culinary giant France and ahead of Italy.
"We are ranked as the number one destination for food and wine for people who have visited from China, USA, France, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the UK and South Korea."
The Restaurant Australia concept magazine, which provides a precursor to the new campaign's flavour, is stacked high with examples of Tasmanian fare, including the island's apple orchards, salmon farms, abalone and meet-the-maker experiences in the vineyards of the Huon Valley.
Tasmania's unique food experiences are also part of the pitch to the world's foodies, in the form of day-trip food trails dotted across the state.
"In Elizabeth Town, Ashgrove Cheese Farm offers traditional and specialty cheddars, like the Leicester-style Rubicon Red. Visit Muddled restaurant and wine bar in Burnie for abalone," the magazine reads. "And at the Freycinet Marine Oyster Farm, guests at Tasmania's Saffire hotel are kitted out in waterproof gear to explore Pacific oyster beds. The harvest is then sampled on-site, freshly shucked with a glass of champagne."
The Australian food festival calendar is also spruiked as a selling point for the nation, with regional gems such as the Hobart's waterside Taste Festival earning special mention.
Mr McEvoy said the Restaurant Australia concept would be absorbed in the next phase of TA's existing global campaign, There's Nothing Like Australia, to improve global perceptions of Australia's culinary offering.
"There's Nothing Like Australia has already been a huge success around the world, appearing in 25 countries and translated into 17 different languages, by highlighting our warm and welcoming people and spectacular natural beauty," Mr McEvoy said.
"Now we will be looking to ignite the tastebuds of travellers world-wide with a marketing push that captures the fresh thinking, open air, and the flavours that define our food and wine offering and can set us apart from the rest of the world as a tourist destination.
"Whether it's devouring fresh-shucked oysters in Tassie or following one of the many food trails or festivals in Australia, we want international visitors to know they will be spoilt for choice."
Source: The Herald Sun, 18 September 2012
