5-year plan will take Ontario’s Indigenous Food Tourism forward

Thursday, August 19, 2021

Indigenous Tourism Ontario (ITO) has recently introduced a new strategy that would help in advancing the industry related to the Indigenous food tourism across the province in the coming five years.

On Aug. 10th, Growing Indigenous Food Tourism in Ontario (FEAST) was released after two years of developmental work with partners including the Culinary Tourism Alliance.

To quote Kevin Eshkawkogan, ITO’s president and CEO, in a news release, “As Indigenous people of these lands, we’ve been hosts for hundreds of years, and initiatives like FEAST will further create space to help Indigenous people tell their story on their terms. Indigenous food supply chains are ancient, yet still exist and will exist as long as Mother Earth exists. As the first region in the world to complete and begin to implement an Indigenous food tourism strategy, we are extremely proud to be helping the Indigenous food tourism sector in Ontario grow for all to enjoy.”

ITO believes that food tourism includes “any tourism experience where a person interacts with food and drink that reflects the local cuisines, heritages, or cultures of a place.” This comprises local dining at a restaurant, visiting a farm, or attending a cooking class.

“The rise of food tourism stems from a shift to experiential travel where visitors are immersed in the culture of the place in a meaningful way,” the ITO notes. “This is usually achieved through memorable interactions with the local people, food, and environment.”

FEAST is all set to create new products, heighten awareness regarding Indigenous food tourism, and make the use of food tourism to help Indigenous food sovereignty.

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