Tourism and quality agro-food products: an opportunity for the Spanish countryside

Abstract

This paper describes the relationships between tourism and the agricultural production of traditional products, the latter having achieved new levels of appreciation in recent years as a result of quality designations. In this context, agro-food products can be considered as gastronomic tourism resources that enable tourism both to be developed and itself become a tool for promoting and commercialising quality agro-food products. These two circumstances merge around a single aim: the local development of areas traditionally regarded as marginal within the regional context. These facts are showed in the Catalan region of Priorat (Spain) where wines support the local development.