Gastro trends

Changing consumer trends and the need to tailor food propositions and menus to suit was the theme of the keynote address at Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology’s first Gastronomy Symposium, which took place earlier this month.

Speaker Una Fitzgibbon, marketing director at Bord Bia, was one of a number of Irish and international experts on gastronomy, as well as specialists in food tourism and the hospitality sector, who discussed and debated an eclectic range of topics.

These included best practice in food tourism, the effect of diet on depression, policy around genetically modified food and good practice for farmers’ markets.

“There were a number of very interesting topics discussed, from culinary innovation to new food technology,” said Fitzgibbon.

Her own address referred to the need to anticipate future consumer trends, of which three predominate: the importance of food provenance, the quest for health and wellness and an increased awareness of environmental sustainability issues.

For the hospitality sector, acknowledging the growing desire among tourists to seek out local fare wherever they travel could reap dividends, she said, “Even through something as simple as putting Irish stew on the menu.”