Agritourism – specifically food and wine tourism – was under discussion during the two-day GastroTour gathering from 17 to 19 November in the Western Cape.
Delegates from universities and wineries in Spain, Portugal, the Canary Islands and Eastern Europe’s Czech Republic and Georgia were hosted at the GastroTour event by Stellenbosch University (SU) and Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT), and funded by the Erasmus+ programme of the European Union.
The group is working on improving training in the wine and food tourism industry by creating a syllabus for online training. Apart from curriculum meetings, they attended lectures and panel discussions, visited local wineries, and enjoyed a traditional South African ‘braai’.
Skills development tool
The delegates gathered on Monday, 17 November at the Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study (STIAS) to workshop on themes around the transformation of regional wine and food tourism industries. Topics discussed included the future of wine and food tourism, skills development in the South African wine industry, and sustainability.
In his welcome address, the CEO of SA Wine, Rico Basson, said that the attending countries at the 2025 GastroTour workshop not only have similar viticultural histories and wine traditions, but also ‘a shared ambition for shaping a sustainable wine and food tradition’.
“Gastrotour is an opportunity for peer learning of similar experiences,” he added.
Kachné Ross, people and skills development manager at South Africa Wine, and manager of the South African Wine Industry Professional Body (SAWIPB) introduced the Learner Management System (LMS). Available via the SAWIPB website, the LMS is a skills development tool aligned with the wine industry’s training needs, which assists users to advance their careers in the industry.
Indigenous flavours
A panel discussion led by Elizabeth Colucci of the European-based organisation Obreal, focused on empowering vine-to-table tourism through skills and innovation. Heidi Duminy, principal of the Cape Wine Academy, said that the academy offers courses on food and wine pairing, while sommelier Gregory Lorimer called for the inclusion of more indigenous flavours and ingredients in food offerings.
Agricultural economist at the SU, Dr Melissa van der Merwe, noted that there is a trend to combine food and wine tourism with learning experiences, wellness, and activities such as mountain biking and yoga retreats.
On identifying the primary training needs in agritourism, there was consensus that the focus is on ‘people’. Duminy said that wine service training at the Cape Wine Academy has been restructured: “We are starting the course with ‘client service’ rather than the ‘history of South African Wine’.” The importance of identifying what guests value and skills training that focuses on entrepreneurship was also mentioned.
People connect to people
Another panel discussed trends and challenges in agritourism, and it was agreed that food and wine tourism should extend beyond a tasting room. Language was seen as a limitation in describing the flavour profiles of a wine in native languages, but an AI model being developed by Dr Albert Severs of the SU might be able to be used in training programs.
‘Screens’ and keeping the attention of younger wine lovers were identified as other challenges, but ‘managers being present’ and engaging with clients in the tasting room and restaurant were solutions offered by Lorimer.
Elmarie Rabe, chairperson of the SA Wine Routes Forum, mentioned ‘sustainability’ as a driving factor in wine tourism and marketing. “People want to connect with people, with the wine, and with the land. Regenerative farming and wastewater treatment are management practices that increase the sustainability impact of a brand. Consumers like the millennials and Gen Zs want to feel good about the brands they support,” said Rabe.
Online training
During their visit to the Wellington campus of CPUT on 18 November, the delegates toured the campus and discussed the final modules of the GastroTour learning platform and curriculum. The group is working on an online course in food and wine tourism. This digital educational tool will advance training in, and the transformation of regional food and wine tourism industries.
The GastroTour group also visited the Pebbles Academy in the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley and concluded the three-day GastroTour with a vineyard walk and multisensory food and wine pairing at Creation Wines in the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley near Hermanus.
