The influence of gastronomic identity factors on food tourism development in the Republic of Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bojana Kalenjuk Pivarski; Maja Paunić; Nemanja Šarenac; Stefan Šmugović; Predrag Mlinarević; Velibor Ivanović; Jelena Marjanović; Stevan Pavlović; Dragana Tekić; Bojan Ðerčan; Dragan Tešanović; Snježana Gagić Jaraković

doi:10.3389/fnut.2023.1335943

The influence of gastronomic identity factors on food tourism development in the Republic of Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina

Front Nutr. 2024 Jan 8:10:1335943. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2023.1335943. eCollection 2023.

Affiliations

¹ Department of Geography, Tourism and Hotel Management, Faculty of Sciences, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia.
² Faculty of Economics Pale, University of East Sarajevo, Pale, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
³ Department of Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Novi Sad, Novi Sad, Serbia.
⁴ International Center for Professional Studies, Novi Sad, Serbia.

Abstract

Background and aims: The gastronomic identity of an area is the key factor in tourism development, attracting numerous tourists and generating significant income. Numerous economic actors participate in its use and proper placement, and their perception of the gastronomic potential significantly affects its distribution and use in tourism. The main aim of this study is to investigate the factors of gastronomic identity that influence the development of tourism, observed at two tourist destinations in Southeast Europe [the Republic of Serbia (RS) the city of Novi Sad with Fruška Gora Mountain, n = 305 and Bosnia and Herzegovina (BIH) the city of Sarajevo with Jahorina Mountain, n = 301].

Methods: In order to define the factors that are relevant to food tourism development, a custom-made GastroIdentity scale was created. A survey was conducted among employees in the hospitality and tourism industry as well as employees in educational institutions in the field of hospitality and tourism.

Results: The research results show that employees from the RS area acknowledge the importance of organizing gastronomic events where local products are presented and that they understand that dishes and beverages with unique and recognizable tastes can characterize their area. Employees from the BIH area pointed out that the nutritional quality of their local agricultural and gastronomic products represents an advantage when compared to mass-produced ones and that the local gastronomic culture and tradition are authentic representatives of the culture of the region.

Conclusion: The GastroIdentity scale proved to be dependable, highlighting gastronomic culture and tradition as extremely crucial factors in tourism, using the input provided by the employees from the investigated areas. Noteworthy results were also recorded regarding the need for incentives for food tourism development in the investigated regions.

Keywords: BIH; Serbia; catering; food; gastronomic tourism; gastronomy; tourism.

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This research is part of a bilateral sciences project called: The Importance of Gastronomic Identity in the Development of Hospitality Tourism Offer was funded by the Provincial Secretariat for Higher Education and Scientific Research of A.P. Vojvodina, Grant No. 142-451-323/2023-01/1.