Scotland Food & Drink

Food Tourism Scotland, a national action plan for “creating a global food tourism destination and unlocking a £1 billion growth opportunity,” recognizes both the inherent value of Scottish food and drink and the growth potential associated with making it a meaningful part of every visitor experience. One of the actions within this plan, and identified for immediate progression by a food tourism pandemic recovery group, was a review of VisitScotland’s food quality assurance scheme, entitled Taste Our Best. Taste Our Best, which recognizes and celebrates Scottish hospitality businesses that provide a quality Scottish food and drink experience, integrates with VisitScotland’s broader Quality Assurance scheme and official grading system for tourism businesses.

Bannikin was commissioned to undertake the review process and support the evolution planning for Taste Our Best scheme. There were several motivations behind this project, but Bannikin was able to identify with the project partners, which included VisitScotland, an achievable focus for needed results. More specifically, the scope of work included gathering data on the current state of the scheme, using the insights garnered to envision an inspiring future for Taste Our Best, and then working backwards to plan innovations over the next few years that will bring the scheme closer to the vision. Across the project, a large number of residents and industry members were engaged, as well as national and regional partners, government representatives, and staff. Importantly, the highly collaborative and participatory approach that was applied to the project saw both VisitScotland and Scotland Food & Drink actively involved in the review and evolution planning activities.