The Impact of Local Food Festivals on Rural Areas’ Development

The importance of food festivals in the functioning of local rural areas is manifested in the construction of a sense of community and place. However, each stakeholder group perceives the impact of such festivals differently. The literature lacks a comprehensive approach to this issue. The main aim of this research is, thus, to identify how particular groups of stakeholders perceive the impact of a local food festival on the development of a rural area. The research was conducted at a small local food festival in Poland in July 2020. Individual groups of stakeholders (organizers, vendors and visitors) were asked to assess the impact of the festival on the development of the rural area. This research was conducted in three main stages using various research tools. In the first stage, an in-depth interview was conducted with the festival’s organizers. In the second stage, a survey, via a questionnaire, was conducted with visitors. In the third stage, semi-structured interviews were held with vendors. Surveys and interviews were carried out using the paper-and-pencil interview (PAPI) method. Our results indicate that interest in the impact of festivals on rural development decreases with distance. That is, the sooner such effects are visible, the more positive they are perceived. Moreover, visitors (on vacation) perceive a festival’s impact more positively than vendors (at work).