Media Release: Taste for Tourism launches competition to find champion

Under-30 wil win opportunity to join panel of experts at Oban conference

YOUNG people with a taste for Scotland’s outstanding food and drink and a passion for promoting Scottish fare to the rest of the world are being invited to enter a competition for the chance to address delegates at a major conference designed to bring food tourists to Scotland.

The Taste for Tourism conference in Oban this November aims to catapult Scotland to the top of the wish list for tourists who see high quality food and drink as the main reason to travel.

The event will bring together food producers, caterers and travel firms to create more mouth-watering attractions and brand Scotland as a food destination.

The summit has a line-up of prestigious speakers including international experts responsible for setting up highly successful food destinations overseas, but it is also keen to give young inspirational home-grown talent a chance to shine.

The competition will see one person win a free trip to Oban alongside tickets to attend the Taste for Tourism conference.

There they will be given the opportunity to join a panel of experts who will lead the discussion on how to best promote Scotland as a food tourism destination in front of an audience of food producers, tourism businesses, tour operators, agencies and media.

The winner will be given the chance to join industry experts James Withers, CEO, Scotland Food & Drink and Marc Crothall, CEO, Scottish Tourism Alliance, to put forward their opinions and expertise on how to shape the future of Scotland’s food and drink and tourism sectors.

Under 30s with a passion for Scotland’s food, drink, landscape and heritage are invited to enter the competition by emailing info@tastefortourism.scot explaining a little bit about themselves, including their name, date of birth and where they are based, and what they would like to present to delegates, in no more than 250 words.

Councillor Aileen Morton, policy lead for Strategic Tourism, Argyll and Bute Council, which is supporting the event, said: “The summit is all about learning and we have a fantastic line-up of top international experts, but we also want to have young voices and voices from Scotland.

“That’s why we are running this competition to find a passionate and articulate young food fan to take part in changing the future of Scotland as a food tourism destination and be at the forefront of leading the next generation of food producers and industry experts.”

Fiona Richmond, project manager, Scotland Food & Drink, said: “The Taste for Tourism conference will explore ways of capitalising on Scotland’s strong food heritage and excellent produce to promote food destination tourism.

“The Oban summit will near the culmination of the Scottish Government’s Year of Food and Drink celebrations, which has seen VisitScotland team up with EventScotland, Scotland Food & Drink and Think Local to promote Scotland as a destination for outstanding produce.”

The event will bring together food producers, tourism businesses, tour operators, agencies and the media to learn about each other and discuss ways of further developing food tourism in Scotland. It takes place in Oban, Argyll, on the 3rd, 4th and 5th of November, 2015.

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For more information about the Taste for Tourism event please contact:

Julie McSkimming julie.mcskimming@mucklemedia.co.uk on 0131 603 6074

or

Lynsey Clark lynsey.clark@mucklemedia.co.uk on 01463 214 965

Notes to editors: 

For more information on Taste for Tourism, and to book tickets for the event, visit the website www.tastefortourism.scot.

Taste for Tourism aims to explore how best to promote Scotland as a food tourism destination and identify how the industry can work together to recognise best practice in making this goal a reality.

Taste for Tourism is being organised by Food From Argyll and Argyll and the Isles Tourism Co-Operative, two not-for-profit organisations with a passion for promoting food and drink tourism.

Event partners include Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Scotland Food and Drink, Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society, Caledonian MacBrayne, Argyll & Bute Council, VisitScotland and the Scottish Tourism Alliance.

The Year of Food and Drink Scotland 2015 is a Scottish Government initiative led by VisitScotland in partnership with EventScotland, Scotland Food & Drink and Think Local.

Full information on the celebration and a free toolkit to support engagement are available to access at: http://www.visitscotland.org/business_support/advice_materials/toolkits/year_of_food_and_drink_2015.aspx

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Contact: Julie McSkimming
Phone: 0131 603 6074
Email: julie.mcskimming@mucklemedia.co.uk
Website: http://www.tastefortourism.scot