See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/347374274 Food museums as cultural institutions and tourist attractions: Evidence from Italy Article in Journal of Gastronomy and Tourism · January 2020 DOI: 10.3727/216929720X15968961037935 CITATIONS READS 2 77 2 authors: Roberta Garibaldi Andrea Pozzi University of Bergamo University of Bergamo 72 PUBLICATIONS 248 CITATIONS 28 PUBLICATIONS 81 CITATIONS SEE PROFILE Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects: E-CUL-TOURS - Managing Cultural Heritage in Tourism View project In viaggio per cibo e per vino View project All content following this page was uploaded by Roberta Garibaldi on 24 February 2021. The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file. SEE PROFILE FOOD MUSEUMS AS CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS AND TOURIST ATTRACTIONS: EVIDENCE FROM ITALY Roberta Garibaldi, Andrea Pozzi (University of Bergamo) In recent years, food museums have turned into popular attractions for tourists. Scholars and practitioners have emphasized their role as agents of preservation, education and cultural heritage interpretation, but devoted little attention to tourism related issues. To fill the gap, this paper investigates Italian food museums in order to assess their characteristics, tasks, audience and modes of engagement. Findings suggest that community engagement is an important task along with safeguarding and promoting food heritage. Creating or improving external relationships is crucial for public museums to get recognized for their role and value. For museums operated by private companies, engaging with local stakeholders and residents serves not just a branding purpose, but also in awakening their interest in past and present issues concerning the product (nutrition, safety, taste, cultural and social values). The majority of Italian food museums mainly appeal to domestic travelers, which indicates the potential to reach a larger, international audience. Visibility and language issues remain crucial to reach international tourists but reframing the museum experience is also essential to meet new visitors’ needs. Exploiting traditional exhibitions of food-related objects with multimedia technology and practical activities such as classes, workshops, cooking shows can help in engaging the audiences. INTRODUCTION Museums have frequently engaged with food heritage and culinary traditions. From ancient to contemporary times, food played a major role in the evolution of civilisation and displaying foodrelated objects and artefacts is common in natural and history museums. Today, a number of cultural attractions have exhibits focused on food, and they narrate the story of the produce and production processes also through animation and visitor involvement. Because food often offers very appealing experiences and entertainment for tourists (Garibaldi, 2019b; Stone et al., 2020), food museums have become increasingly popular among those visiting destinations known for their food heritage and products. In Europe, ‘Heineken Experience’ is a popular company museum and beer tourist attraction in Amsterdam and one of the most visited attractions of the city, welcoming more than 1 million visitors per year (respons.nl, 2018). ‘Southern Food and Beverage Museum’ in New Orleans (US), the ‘Pacific Food & Beverage Museum’ in Los Angeles (US) and the ‘Canada Agriculture and Food Museum’ in Ottawa (Canada) are well established and much-loved food museums (Levent & Mihalache, 2017). Despite their relevance, systematic inquiry into the field of food museums is limited. Professional literature does emphasize their central role in food and heritage interpretation, while recognizing food museums as attractions for traditional and non-traditional visitors (Everett, 2016; Garibaldi, 2019a; Hjalager, 2002; Mitchell and Mitchell, 2001; Moon, 2016; Williams, 2013). Tourism-related issues have been particularly poorly treated. This study contributes to the debate and purposely investigates public and private Italian food museums in terms of characteristics, tasks, audience and modes of visitors’ engagement. A presentation of a selection of case studies of corporate and nationally renowned food museums is also added, in order to practically show how food museums can engage 1 visitors with local/regional food heritage while simultaneously meeting their institutional or corporate tasks. Italy has a highly developed foodscape, and food tourism is gaining an increasing importance (Garibaldi, 2018; 2019b; 2020). Museums of various origin have started to launch their exhibits around food since the 1990s, and there is a growing evidence that these entities – which are widespread throughout all the country – are important attractions for tourists (BAICR Sistema Cultura; 2007; Il Cercatore di Perle, 2014; Montanari, 2018). LITERATURE REVIEW In the modern society the disintegration of established structures of meaning led people to search for new sources of identity that provide some security (Bauman, 1997; Giddens, 1990). Food has become an important factor in this search because it represents one of individuals’ basic needs (Richards, 2002). Along with the value for human nutrition, it reflects social identity of groups and memberships. It is also the repository of traditions and collective identity and a vehicle of self-representation and cultural exchange (Harvey, 2009; Montanari, 2006; Murcott, 1982; Scarpato, 2002). Given the strong relationship between food and identity, it is not surprising that globalization is perceived as a destabilizing factor. Leading to more homogenised eating habits, food risks to be separated from its roots. However, globalization can lead to positive outcomes: it can contribute to raise awareness on food issues among communities and to stimulate the reinvention of local gastronomic traditions and recipes (Fernandes & Richards, 2017; Richards, 2002). Museums and heritage sites, for instance, have started to preserve lost or disappearing food traditions and recipes, using them as starting point for interpreting stories and traditions of the past (Hjalager, 2002; Moon, 2016). It must be noted that displaying the food of the people through times and places has always been common in natural and history museums. The exhibits in these museums generally reflect the development of agricultural practices, the tools used, the activities behind, the influence of climate on food and food habits, etc., but often their meanings become secondary to the study of people, governments, economies and environments. Food museums have been established more recently, and they are recognized as cultural sites that document and exhibit food and foodways in all their different aspects (Williams, 2013). As opposed to natural and history museums, their emphasis is placed on the product and its interpretation. They tell the story of food, its preparation, celebrations, social and cultural meanings, and this may be limited or not to specific territories or specialities. They can be repositories of tools and machineries used in food production and agriculture, cooking and eating utensils and furniture. They may exhibit plant species, raw ingredients and finished products, cookbooks, historical documents and images on rural life (Moon, 2016; Williams, 2013). Museums can be centred on food culture in its widest sense. For instance, ‘Alimentarium’ (Switzerland) exhibits the history of food and human nutrition all over the world, and ‘Le Cité du Vin’ (France) displays the culture of wine and tells the history of this product through times and in different wine regions. Alternatively, exhibits can be dedicated to local products and culinary heritage, such as ‘Museu do Pão’ that is dedicated to Portuguese bread. ‘Salzmuseum’ recalls the history of the salt production in the Lüneburg Saltworks, Germany. Besides displaying objects and artefacts, food museums also invite their audience to take part in growing, making, learning about food culture through live presentations, workshops, events, talks and discussions (Moson, 2016; Williams, 2013). The ‘Southern Food and Beverage Museum’ in New Orleans (United States) organizes practical demonstrations where chefs show the cooking methods and inform about ingredients and recipes. ‘Guinness Storehouse’ (Ireland) offers learning activities on how to pour the beer. ‘Scotch Whiskey Experience’ museum in Scotland engages visitors in special guided tasting tours. Roles and functions of food museums In recent years, museums have been facing a twofold challenge. On the one hand, they strive to meet their institutional tasks of collecting, preserving and promoting cultural heritage (Loach, Rowley, & 2 Griffiths, 2017). On the other hand, they must attract and engage a larger audience as to ensure their economic sustainability (Kotler & Kotler, 2000). This situation has certainly obliged museums to adapt their mission, vision and organizational processes, while also stimulating the development of new concepts, functions and activities (Antón, Camarero, & Garrido, 2017; Kim, Soo, & Park, 2016). Conceiving museums as places “... for the preservation of those objects which best illustrate the phenomena of nature and the works of man, and the utilization of these for the increase of knowledge and for the culture and enlightenment of the people” (Goode, 1985: 198) is therefore limitative. Their functions actually comprise knowledge creation, education, social inclusion, visitors’ amusement, company branding, revenue generation (Alexander, Alexander, & Decker, 2017). From this perspective, food museums can be viewed not only as repositories of food traditions and recipes, but also as places for entertainment and education. A brilliant example is ‘La Cité du Vin’ in Bordeaux (France). Since its opening, this cultural facility has become a lively cultural and social venue for the residents in the region, and it is also an essential feature in the city tourist circuit. Its function to promote wine heritage passes through the permanent exhibition and a varied cultural program, including cultural mediation activities, live performances, exhibitions and debates, which are organized in synergy with national and international partners (La Cité du Vin, 2019; Garibaldi, 2019a). When established by private companies, food museums can be used also as devices for building the brand, which is frequently linked to a certain city or region. This focus on promotion of the brand, mixing corporate and industry memory, is clear in the ‘Guinness Storehouse’. The museum states that visitors can embark on a journey through 250 years, “telling the history that goes into making every pint of our world-famous beer” (Guinness Storehouse, 2020). In this message there is a clear link between the intended brand image and statements. There is also a growing evidence that, with the raise of food tourism, these museums have turned into popular attractions. ‘La Cité du Vin’ and the ‘Guinness Storehouse’ are today landmarks for travelers: the former welcomed 421,000 visitors in 2018 (La Cité du Vin, 2019) while the latter over 1.7 million guests in 2019 (Guinness Storehouse, 2019). ‘Guinness Storehouse’ is also Ireland’s leading international visitor attraction, testifying its attractiveness for a wider audience. Food museums have been poorly treated within the existing food and tourism literature. Scholarly researchers and practitioners have paid attention on categories of food tourists, spatially distributed attractions such as routes, festivals and events, cooking classes and the marketing and promotion of food tourism, but a little is known about fixed sites such as food museums (Everett, 2016). Studies on this topic tend to focus on the central role of food in heritage interpretation, and they have found that displaying foodstuffs can represent an opportunity to attract new audiences and infuse new meanings, but it also arises challenges mainly due to their “object-poor” nature (Everett, 2016; Garibaldi, 2019a; Hjalager, 2002; Mitchell and Mitchell, 2001; Moon, 2016; Williams, 2013). Although food museums have been generally recognized as attractive for traditional and nontraditional visitors, previous studies have devoted a little attention on tourism related issues. This study attempts to advance the current knowledge on food museums and purposely investigates public and private Italian entities in terms of characteristics, tasks, audience and modes of engagement. Italy has a highly developed foodscape, which has always played a relevant role for economic, social and cultural development. Food products, traditions and recipes moved into museums and heritage sites since 1990s, but their attractiveness toward travellers has increased only in recent years (Garibaldi, 2019b; 2020). METHODOLOGY This study defines food museums as public or private cultural institutions that are topically oriented toward food culture in its wide sense or on specialities (Williams, 2013). Other areas of specialization (e.g. history, nature, ethnography, anthropology) were not analysed since food is secondary in these museums. 3 The research methodology followed a three-step process that combined a quantitative and qualitative approach. First, as an official list of food museums did not exist, a dataset enlisting all food museums operating in April 2016 was created from previous national-level research (BAICR Sistema Cultura, 2007; Il Cercatore di Perle, 2014). Ninety-nine (99) food museums were identified. Information about name, location, ownership and speciality were also collected with the purpose of depicting the national situation. Second, a direct survey using Google Forms was conducted on the entire population of Italian food museums. Questions aimed at collecting further information on both the institution/company and the museum itself. Museum managers or owners were invited to provide details about the managing institution or company, museums’ tasks, their perceived satisfaction with the results obtained and the audience. It is conceivable that food museums also work with preservation, social inclusion, economic sustainability, land and brand identity diffusion among their main tasks, similarly to museums with different areas of specialization (Black, 2012; Loach, Rowley, & Griffiths, 2017). Forty-one (41) responses out of 99 were collected (41%) in the period April-May 2016. Descriptive statistics were used to coin the basic features of the data collected in these steps. Frequency and percentages for each indicator/question were calculated, as to provide basic information on the phenomenon. Third, a further analysis was performed on three selected museums nationally renowned as tourist attractions. Two of them (Perugina House of Chocolate and Galleria Campari) were in the list while one (Lavazza Museum) was not included as it opened in 2018. Information was collected from secondary sources and during onsite visits. The purpose was to show how food museums can engage visitors with local/regional food heritage while meeting their institutional or corporate tasks (e.g. preservation, branding). RESULTS Food museums in Italy: an overview In Italy, food and wine production is spread throughout all regions and plays a significant role economically, territorially, historically, socially and culturally. The huge diversity of rural landscapes, from Northern to Southern areas, is reflected in the multiplicity of products, which differ in characteristics as well as in their historic and cultural aspects. The diversity is proved by the existence of 825 geographical indications in the national territory: 575 Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), 248 Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) and 2 Traditional Speciality Guaranteed (TSG) (Garibaldi, 2020). Increasingly over the past 30 years, the symbolic value of food is recognized as a ‘common good’, deserving of being preserved and exhibited in museums (Montanari, 2018). Earlier concepts date back to the 90s and, since then, food museums have been established throughout all Italy, covering a wide range of productions and with different approaches (BAICR Sistema Cultura, 2007). Despite that, and although the increasing attractiveness among travellers, little is examined about the museums’ geographical distribution, ownership and speciality of the exhibitions. The lack of insight has certainly limited the appraisal of food museums as well as their recognition within the wider field of cultural heritage. The study found 99 food museums operating in April 2016 (Table 1). With regards to their ownership, public (48%) and private (52%) were equally represented. Public entities are typically not-for-profit institutions, although some income derives from their operations in addition to relying heavily on public funds. Within this study, insights into detailed type of public ownership (e.g. state or region) have not been collected. However, it is conceivable that municipalities and, to a lesser extent, regional and national bodies, are managing institutions (BAICR Sistema Cultura, 2007). Across privately owned museums, food processing companies (12%), wineries (11%), farms (9%) and beverage processing firms (9%) were the most common entities operating food museums, while associations (3%), consortia (2%) and other companies (5%) were less represented. Frequently, private museums 4 had their exhibits displayed within company buildings, just as to reinforce the relationship between the product and the brand. Food museums were widespread throughout the entire country, thus illustrating the richness of Italian food production. A large quantity of food museums was established in Northern Italy (58, equal to 59%), in particular Emilia-Romagna (14%), Piedmont (13%) and Lombardy (8%). Central Italy (Tuscany, Marches, Lazio, and Umbria) counted 20 food museums (20%) while Southern Italy (Abruzzo, Molise, Campania, Basilicata, Apulia, Calabria) and main Italian islands (Sardinia and Sicily) had 21 units (21%). With regards to specialities, wine was the most frequently represented (30%), an effect of higher production volumes and an established tradition of high quality. A wide variety of food and beverage products were the main theme of the museums’ exhibits: olive oil (10%); spirits, cheese and honey (4%); fruit, milk, bread and truffles (3%); beer, other alcoholic drinks, coffee, chocolate, sugared almond and salt (2%); vinegar, eel, herbs, mushrooms, ice-cream, liquorice, mint, chili pepper, pizza, cured meats, tea and sugar (1%). Museums dedicated to general food culture represented 7%. Table 1. Food museums in Italy. Name, region, ownership and speciality Museum name Region Ownership Speciality Museo dell’arte olearia (Loreto Aprutino) Abruzzo Public museum Olive oil Museo Pelino (Sulmona) Abruzzo Food processing company Sugared almond Cooperativa il Riccio Aosta Valley Farm Chestnut Ecomuseo della castagna (Albard) Aosta Valley Public museum Chestnut Ecomuseo della latteria (Donnas) Aosta Valley Public museum Milk Museo della fontina (Valpelline) Aosta Valley Other Cheese Museo della vite e del vino (Donnas) Aosta Valley Other Wine Museo del miele (Chatillon) Aosta Valley Public museum Honey d'Araprì Spumante Classico Apulia Winery Wine Leone de Castris Apulia Winery Wine MUCCI MARIO Apulia Food processing company Sugared almond Museo Vino Primitivo (Manduria) Apulia Public museum Wine Cantina Albea Apulia Winery Wine Amarelli Fabbrica di Liquirizia Calabria Public museum Liquorice Accademia italiana del Peperoncino Calabria Private association Chili pepper Museo del cedro (Cosenza) Calabria Public museum Fruits Museo vivente della vita mediterranea Campania Public museum Food culture Azienda agricola Palmiri Antonio Campania Farm Food culture Museo della pizza (Napoli) Campania Public museum Pizza MUSA museo del sale di Cervia Associazione museo dell'Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena Museo del Pane Emilia Romagna Public museum Sale Emilia Romagna Private association Vinegar Emilia Romagna Public museum Bread Museo del Castagno Emilia Romagna Public museum Chestnut Azienda agricola La Tosa Emilia Romagna Wine Medici Ermete & Figli Srl Emilia Romagna Musei del Cibo della provincia di Parma Emilia Romagna Winery Wine, beer or spirits processing company Private association Casa Artusi Emilia Romagna Other Food culture 5 Wine Food culture Museo dell’olio (Brisighella) Museo formaggio Fossa (Sogliano Rubicone) Museo dell’anguilla (Comacchio) Emilia Romagna Public museum Olive oil Emilia Romagna Food processing company Cheese Emilia Romagna Public museum Eel Museo del Gelato (Anzola Emilia) Emilia Romagna Public museum Ice-cream Coppini arte olearia Emilia Romagna Farm Olive oil Museo Villani (Castelnuovo Ragone) Emilia Romagna Food processing company Cured meats Museo della civiltà del vino Friuli Venezia Giulia Public museum Wine Museo del vino Pittaro (Zompicchia) Friuli Venezia Giulia Winery Wine Museo dell'olio della Sabina Museo diffuso del vino (Monteporzio Catone) Lazio Public museum Salt Lazio Public museum Wine Museo Peroni (Roma) Lazio Museo del cioccolato (Norma) Lazio Wine, beer or spirits processing company Food processing company Museo dell’olio (Arnasco) Liguria Public museum Olive oil Museo Sommariva (Albenga) Liguria Farm Olive oil Museo Ca’Lunae (Castelnuovo Magra) Liguria Food processing company Wine Museo Fratelli Carli (Imperia) Liguria Food processing company Olive oil Ricci Curbastro Azienda Agricola Lombardy Winery Wine VM servizi srl Museo del Latte e della Storia della Muggiasca Fondazione Morando Lombardy Other Wine Lombardy Public museum Milk Lombardy Public museum Bread Museo del tartufo (Mantova) Lombardy Truffle Galleria Campari (Milano) Lombardy Branca Lombardy Consorzio Grana Padano Lombardy Public museum Wine, beer or spirits processing company Wine, beer or spirits processing company Consortium Museodellabirra Marche Other Beer Museo dell’arte del vino (Staffolo) Marche Public museum Wine Museo Etichette del vino (Cupramontana) Marche Public museum Wine Museo del caffè (Montecerignone) Marche Public museum Coffee Caseificio di Nucci 1662 Molise Farm Cheese Figli di Pinin Pero S.p.A. Piedmont Food processing company Sugar Museo della Frutta Francesco Garnier Piedmont Fruits Antica Distelleria Altavilla Piedmont Museo del Gusto Piedmont Public museum Wine, beer or spirits processing company Public museum Azienda Agricola Essenzialmenta Ecomuseo della viticoltura. Comune di Candelo gestisce l'ecomuseo Museo civico del fungo (Giaveno) Piedmont Winery Mint Piedmont Public museum Wine Piedmont Public museum Mushroom Ecomuseo della vite (Cortemilia) Piedmont Public museum Wine Casa dell’Asti (Asti) Piedmont Consortium Wine Museo Gancia (Canelli) Piedmont Winery Wine Museo Ratti dei vini (La Morra) Piedmont Winery Wine Museo del vino Toso (Cossano Belbo) Piedmont Wine Berta Distillerie Piedmont Winery Wine, beer or spirits processing company 6 Beer Chocolate Spirits Spirits Cheese Spirits Food culture Spirits Museo del Vino - Enoteca regionale della Sardegna Museo Civiltà Contadina (Bitti) Sardinia Public museum Wine Sardinia Public museum Food culture Museo Agroalimentare (Siddi) Sardinia Public museum Food culture azienda agricola la casa del te' Sicily Farm Tea Museo dell’olio (Chiaramonte Gulfi) Sicily Public museum Olive oil Museo del sale (Nubia Paceco) Sicily Public museum Salt Museo del pane rituale (Salemi) Sicily Public museum Bread Aboca S.P.A Società Agricola Tuscany Farm Herbs Museo della Vite e del Vino Tuscany Public museum Wine Museo della vite e del vino Tuscany Public museum Wine Museo del Castagno Tuscany Public museum Chestnut Museo Vernaccia (San Gimignano) Tuscany Public museum Wine Museo del vino (Roccastrada) Tuscany Public museum Wine Museo della vite e del vino (Scansano) Tuscany Public museum Wine Museo tartufo (San Giovanni d’Asso) Tuscany Public museum Truffle Museo Frutticultura (Lana) Trentino South Tyrol Public museum Fruits Museo del Vino (Caldaro) Trentino South Tyrol Public museum Wine Museo del Miele (Lavarone) Trentino South Tyrol Farm Honey Museo dell’apicoltura (Soprabolzano) Trentino South Tyrol Public museum Honey Lungarotti Società Agricola arl Umbria Winery Wine Museo del tartufo (Scheggino) Umbria Food processing company Truffle Museo dell’olio Bartolomei (Montecchio) Umbria Farm Olive oil Museo Perugina (Perugia) Umbria Food processing company Chocolate Museo della Latteria Veneto Milk Zonin1821 Veneto Dersut Caffè S.P.A. Veneto Antiche Distillerie Mantovani Veneto Museo del Miele (Ca’ Cappellino) Veneto Museo Grappa Poli (Bassano del Grappa) Veneto Museo Olio d’Oliva (Bardolino) Veneto Public museum Wine, beer or spirits processing company Food processing company Wine, beer or spirits processing company Public museum Wine, beer or spirits processing company Food processing company Wine Coffee Spirits Honey Spirits Olive oil Tasks and audiences of Italian food museums The endeavours to conceive food museums as places for preservation of food is limitative. Scholarly researchers and practitioners emphasize that museums are agents of education and cultural heritage interpretation (Everett, 2016; Moon, 2016; Williams, 2013). Traditional exhibitions of food-related objects such as utensils, packaging and recipes narrate to visitors the history of regional and local heritage, and are often supplemented by activities such as classes, workshops, cooking shows that also actively engage the audience (Eckersley, 2019). Little is known about other key issues. Being established more recently, it is possible that food museums are currently striving to create or improve relationships with local communities and institutions, in order to gain recognition for their role and value. Moving to the private museums, branding certainly represents a core function, but establishing food museums can also serve to increase visitors’ awareness on the product, showing its value for nutrition, safety, taste as well as for social and cultural development. Table 2 summarizes the tasks that were examined within the second stage of this study. A greater attention was paid on lesser-known issues, such as community engagement, revenue generation, 7 innovation, commercial purposes (branding and visibility), sharing personal interest. Responses generally show the relevance of these tasks for food museums, but differences between public and private entities can be noticed. Public museums primarily aimed at strengthening existing relationships with local communities and institutions operating at different levels, along with safeguarding and promoting the food heritage they display. Earning an income from charging visitors might have helped their economic sustainability, but it was nevertheless considered less relevant. This does not necessarily mean that they were paying less attention in improving their attractiveness towards a wide audience. Private museums were mainly initiatives of company owners who expressed the desire to promote new ways of learning, sharing and teaching local food heritage and, thus, to contribute to awakening visitors’ interest in past and present issues concerning the product (nutrition, safety, taste, …). They also aimed at creating value for the company by improving relationship with local stakeholders and residents as well as spreading and reinforcing brand identity and company image. In doing so, these entities aimed also at generating (directly or indirectly) revenues for the company. Table 2. Tasks of food museums Tasks Public Museum Private Museum N. % N. % 15 88% 16 67% 11 65% 11 46% 8 47% 20 83% Diversifying the offering 6 35% 6 25% Creating new relationships 5 29% 0 0% Increasing visibility 4 24% 12 50% Encouraging innovation 3 18% 8 33% Earning income 0 0% 5 21% Total 17 100% 24 100% Improving relationships with the local community Improving relationships with local and national territorial institutions Personal attitude/interest To evaluate their perceived implementation, managers or owners were asked to express their satisfaction with results obtained; in other word, whether they meet their expectations. Food museums do not only sell ‘products’ (e.g. entrance tickets, souvenirs), but attempt to generate intangible benefits that are difficult to quantify. Evaluating satisfaction, although limitative, therefore provides useful indications for understanding their viability and capacity of fulfilling their tasks. Respondents generally showed an overall satisfaction, from moderate to high, which tended to increase among those who run a private entity (Table 3). Generally, it can be argued that higher levels of satisfaction can lead to further improvements in food museums management and to the provision of more sophisticated services. However, it does not shed light on their current sustainability. Table 3. Level of satisfaction among museum owners/managers Level of satisfaction Public Museum Private Museum N. % N. % Very satisfied 9 53% 19 79% Moderately satisfied 8 47% 5 21% 8 Total 17 100% 24 100% With regards to their attractiveness, this study focused on identifying main targets. Table 4 shows that food museums mainly attracted Italian customers, while foreigners were in a minority. Two critical issues need to be further investigated following this. First, there is a need to address the intrinsic role of major tourist routes, assuming that attachment to these routes will improve their visibility towards a wider audience (including international travellers). Another critical issue is the fact that many food museums might not have interpretation in other languages, which is hampering a broader tourism attention. Table 4. Main origin of visitors Main origin of visitors Public Museum Private Museum N. % N. % Italian tourists 14 82% 17 71% Locals and operators 2 12% 2 8% Foreign tourists 1 6% 5 21% Total 17 100% 24 100% Three cases The previous sections have shed light on characteristics, tasks, perceived satisfaction and audience, but lack in details about visitors’ engagement in services and activities. To fill this gap and gain a deeper understanding of Italian food museums as tourists’ attractions, three company museums, ‘Perugina House of Chocolate’, ‘Galleria Campari’ and ‘Lavazza Museum’, have been considered for a further analysis. All three of them have successfully mixed industry memory with visitors’ engagement and the intention of educating visitors about the product and improving the public awareness of the brand. Lavazza Museum, Turin ‘Lavazza Museum’ opened its doors to visitors in 2018. The renowned Italian coffee company created an entire journey around its product and its history, as to allow visitors to engage with the Italian coffee culture. The museum is located nearby the company headquarters in Turin, and it is worth mentioning also that the modern and impressive architectural design matches with the historical facades of the company, creating a visual continuity. The museum is s designed and conceptualized as a circular journey through coffee and culture with five thematic galleries. A number of digital and interactive technologies allow visitors to feel immersed into the history of the Italian coffee brand, gain further understanding about the collection of Lavazza icons (e.g. the “autobar” coffee van and the Carmencita coffee maker, calendars, advertisement) and stimulate memories. The IT opportunities can be activated by a special device provided to the visitors at the entrance – the device has the shape of an espresso cup. Particular attention was devoted to the explanatory texts, which were performed by Holden School and supervised by the writer Alessandro Baricco. The circular journey starts with ‘Casa Lavazza’, a space that introduces visitors to the 120-year history of the company, from the opening of the first grocery in 1895 to today. The ‘Fabbrica’ is a copy of coffee production spaces that explains the production process from the raw material to the cup. The ‘Piazza’ is a faithful reproduction of an Italian square, where people usually enjoy their own coffee. The entire setting was designed to make visitors immersed in the typical Italian atmosphere, where drinking coffee is not just a consumptive activity but conveys social, cultural and historical 9 meanings. The ‘Atelier’ is a photographic studio with images and installations that tells the 60-year history of creative collaboration of Lavazza company. Educational workshops for children are organized while adults can go back in time recalling advertising spots and iconic characters. Before entering to a subsequent space, four workstations allow visitors to take souvenir photos with the icons of the company's creative history. Finally, the ‘Universo’ is an immersive space with 360° multimedia projection. Visitors can use their own cup to customize their journey into the Lavazza world. The journey ends with tastings of a special coffee recipe. Perugina House of Chocolate, Perugia ‘Perugina Historic Museum’ is a company museum established in 1997 by the famous Italian chocolate factory. Ten years after, on the company’s centenary, the museum was implemented and was given the name of ‘Perugina House of Chocolate’, a place that today includes, along with the museum, the Chocolate Factory, the Chocolate School and the Gift Shop. Visitors are provided with the opportunity to discover the history of the brand and its products from its foundation onwards. They can achieve practical knowledge about the chocolate manufacturing process and to have handson opportunities to co-create their own chocolates. The journey starts with a guided visit to the historical museum, containing a collection of images, videos and artefacts considered of immense value. This collection is currently under heritage protection. The visit introduces customers to the history of the company and the chocolate making process, and ends with guided chocolate tasting. The Chocolate Factory is the real place of production where customers can see production phases and discover the tools and machinery employed. After this tour, customers can buy Perugina chocolate and themed gifts in the shop. ‘Perugina House of Chocolate’ also hosts the Chocolate School, a place with 14 cooking stations furnished with all the instruments that enable participants to work with the chocolate, independently or with assistance. A number of master classes, artist classes and trend classes are organized, both for professionals and amateurs. Those attending the courses receive a certificate of participation, the recipe of their own creation and an apron. Galleria Campari, Milan ‘Galleria Campari’ opened in 2010 inside the restored liberty-style building where the factory established its headquarters in 1904. This company museum is conceptualized as a journey through Campari, a popular Italian alcoholic liqueur, its artistic heritage and the art of drinking. The museum welcomed 15,000 guests in 2018, ranging from general visitors, students from primary and secondary schools as well as universities, PRs and communication agents, events’ guests and bartenders. The entire exhibition is an evocative journey through space and time. The first floor of ‘Galleria Campari’ introduces visitors to the history of the brand along with three main thematic lines (art, communication and production). The second floor is centred on the product and encompasses installations, the reproduction of a bar, exposition of historic bottles and glasses, and of a selection of design objects and vintage merchandising. Visitors are engaged and immersed in the atmosphere with multimedia technologies: a video wall provided with 15 screens has been dedicated to carousels 1 from the 50s to the 70s; the 8 high-definition projectors display animated vintage posters on a 32meter wall, videos dedicated to artists, images extrapolated from calendars and advertising spots from the 80s to today. Finally, an interactive table with 12 touch screens allows the guest to observe the company's vast artistic heritage. The peculiarity of this company museum also relies on the unique and vast historical archive, a transversal cultural deposit with over 3,000 works on paper: sketches and autographed drawings, posters of the Belle Époque; posters and advertising graphics from the 1930s to the 90s designed by important artists such as Marcello Dudovich, Leonetto Cappiello, Fortunato Depero, Franz Marangolo, Guido Crepax, Bruno Munari, Ugo Nespolo; carousels and advertising spots directed by The word “carousels” recalls the advertising spots that were transmitted during the Italian television show “Carosello”, which was broadcast on RAI-Radio Televisione Italiana from 1957 to 1977. 1 10 figures such as Federico Fellini, Singh Tarsem and Paolo Sorrentino; artefacts designed by Matteo Thun, Dodo Arslan, Markus Benesch and Matteo Ragni. Many have been digitalized and converted into installations that interact with the original works. ‘Galleria Campari’ offers to visitors two options: a free tour, autonomously accessible, and the Art & Mixology tour, a guided tour accompanied by art historian and a mixologist culminating with the cocktail experience. The museum also organizes temporary exhibitions, educational and research activities, and promotes publications on the history of the company through art and design. The museum lends material to other institutions and is active on the historical-critical consulting sectors to support curatorial projects. DISCUSSION Food museums are generally recognized as agents of preservation, education and cultural heritage interpretation. Professional literature also emphasizes their capability to attract new audiences, which makes museums centered on food potential points of interest for local and foreign visitors (Everett, 2016; Garibaldi, 2019a; Hjalager, 2002; Mitchell and Mitchell, 2001; Moon, 2016; Williams, 2013). However, still little is known about these entities, especially in regard to tourism related issues. From this point of view, this study attempts to advance the current knowledge by depicting a wider picture of Italian food museums in terms of characteristics, tasks, audience and modalities for visitors’ engagement. Italy has a highly developed foodscape with a long tradition in food museums – earlier concepts were established in the 90s. At the time of the survey (2016) 99 entities, widespread throughout all regions, were operative and open to public. Among them, 48 were public and 51 private companies, mainly food and wine producers and processing companies. The view and perspective on food museums are limitative if perceiving them only as places for preservation and interpretation. Aspects of community engagement, which over time for the museums emerged as an important task, must be considered. For public institutions, creating or improving relationships with local communities and institutions was crucial to get a much-needed recognition. In private companies, engaging with local stakeholders and residents mainly serves branding purposes, but the local commitment and personal interest of the owner can create productive links between the private food museums and their surrounding communities. With regards to their audience, both public and private museums were appealing to domestic travellers while foreigners were in a minority. This limited capability to catch a wider public may be caused by lack of visibility and language issues. However, the museum experience and offer may not meet new visitors’ needs and expectations. The professional literature clearly shows that exhibitions of food-related objects are often radically improved, if they can be supplemented by hands-on experiences, which can actively engage the audience (Eckersley, 2019). Case studies analyzed within this study underline the importance of planning an overall experience around food. ‘Lavazza Museum’, ‘Perugina House of Chocolate’ and ‘Galleria Campari’ placed a particular attention on designing and framing the journey inside the museums with multimedia technologies that facilitate the communication of the industry memory, while practical activities such as workshop and classes contribute to deeply engage visitors with food heritage. CONCLUSIONS This study contributes to advancement of the current knowledge on food museums, shedding light on the diverse tasks they are striving to achieve and their current attractiveness for tourists. It also succeeds in creating a dataset including all Italian food museums, with insights on their geographical distribution, ownership and speciality of the exhibition. The survey – with its obvious limitations in scope and scale – may hopefully inspire further studies in filling knowledge gaps. There is a need for comparative studies across European and other 11 countries. Further studies can draw attention to critical issues and perspectives of food museums in the context of tourism, for example the role of the private versus the public entities. The growing competition among food tourism attractions and destinations will likely lead to new challenges for food museums, and they will have to through new business models and interpretation methods to increase their power of fascination. Captivating while preserving and promoting the cultural heritage is a strategic task for museums in a time and context characterized by economic uncertainty. REFERENCES Alexander, E. 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WEBSITES Museo Lavazza: https://museo.lavazza.com/en.html [Last access: 10 July 2020] Casa del Cioccolato Perugina: https://www.perugina.com/it/casa-del-cioccolato/la-casa [Last access: 10 July 2020] Galleria Campari: https://www.campari.com/it/inside-campari/campari-gallery [Last access: 10 July 2020] 13 View publication stats
