Great demand from visitors, high satisfaction with quality and taste, but inadequate presence of Cretan products in tourist accommodation: these were the findings of a doctoral thesis by Giorgos Angelakis presented at the Hellenic Mediterranean University (ELMEPA) in July of this year. The findings were summarised in an article in Haniotika Nea, as follows.

Local products not displayed in the Cretan tourist market
Cretan products represent a strong advantage for the area, but they remain to a large extent unrepresented in the “shop window” of organised tourism. At a time when foreign tourists are buying olive oil, cheese, wine, honey, herbs and tsikoudia, and recognise their quality and authenticity, a notable proportion of them say that they do not find local Cretan products in the hotels and other accommodation where they are staying. According to the data presented in Mr Angelakis’s thesis, the problem was recorded in researches in both 2021 and 2023.

Thirty-seven per cent of visitors in 2021 stated that local agricultural products were not available in their accommodation, a figure which had reduced to 31% in 2023. This reduction indicates an improving trend; however, the fact that almost one in three tourists continued not to find local local products in the hotels where they are staying remains a matter of concern.

In the 2023 research, 77% of visitors said that they ate in restaurants and tavernas, while only 15% ate in hotel restaurants. A further 6% tried the products in speciality outlets for Cretan foodstuffs and only 1.6% at farms and local markets.

Lost added value
In the 2023 survey, almost eight out of ten tourists said that gastronomy was important or very important for their overall satisfaction with their journey, while two out of three said that gastronomy was a major motive for travel. At the same time almost 60% stated that Cretan gastronomy affected to a great or very great extent their decision to visit Crete. Even more significant is the fact that in 2023, 53% of the visitors’ budgets during their holiday in Crete was spent on food, a larger amount than was found in the research of 2021.

In other words, Crete is not faced with visitors who are indifferent. Its visitors are interested in taste, they spend money on food, they seek authenticity and appear to be especially satisfied with the quality of local products. What is missing is the organised and systematic presence of these products throughout the tourist chain.

What the tourists buy
The data in the thesis show that visitors do not restrict themselves to sampling local products, but buy them in significant quantities. In 2023, roughly six out of ten tourists bought olive oil during their holiday in Crete, 55% bought local cheeses, almost half of them bought wine, while large amounts were also recorded for honey, vegetables, tsikoudia, fresh orange juice, herbs, spices and rusks.

The demand, therefore, exists. The problem is that these products are not always to be found in places where visitors spend a large part of their touristic experience: in accommodation, at the buffet, on the menu, at breakfast, in the hotel restaurant.

Imported goods a threat
The thesis suggests that hotels and tourist businesses should offer and promote high-quality products from Crete, rather than replacing them with products from other regions or countries, which are often chosen because of their lower cost. The local organisations which took part in the research recognise that Cretan products are superior in terms of taste, quality, freshness, authenticity, safety and traceability as against imported products.

At the same time however, severe threats were identified, such as the imports of cheap and low-quality agricultural products, “Hellenisation” [the labelling of imported goods as being of Greek origin], distortions of competition and deterioration of the destination’s image.

The barriers
The research identified the weaknesses, the opportunities and the threats facing the agricultural sector in relation to tourism. It showed that the basic barriers to the promotion of local agricultural products to tourism are the lack of an organised marketing and distribution network, the lack of marketing experts, the absence of a coordinating body, higher prices in relation to imported products, but also a lack of cooperation and trust between local businesses.

The proposals
The thesis concludes by presenting specific moves needed to break the barrier between the primary sector and the tourist economy:

– The first prerequisite is the creation of direct synergies between producers, hoteliers and hospitality businesses. Producers must be able to consistently provide tourist businesses with high quality local products, while accommodation providers must reduce their dependence on cheaper imported products.

– Secondly, Cretan products need to be displayed in a prominent position at buffets, to be clearly listed on menus, and to be presented with details of their identity, origin and characteristics. It’s not enough for visitors to eat something Cretan, they must be aware of it.

– The third prerequisite is certification and a common identity. The thesis suggests that local products could be promoted through PDO [Protected Designation of Origin] and PGI [Protected Geographical Indication] marks and under the umbrella of “Crete – Land of Values”, so that the visitor recognises their quality, provenance and authenticity.

It also proposes the creation of a digital platform, via a website and social networks, where tourists would be able to find certified agricultural businesses, producers, distribution points and organised gastronomic activities. Special importance is given to visits to farms, oil mills, wineries, cheese makers and businesses of gastronomic interest. These visits, it emphasises, must be organised in a professional manner and be accompanied by expert guides, so that the product is connected with the history, the mythology, traditions and identity of the area.
(Haniotika Nea, 06/07/26)

Crete – Land of Values
The thesis mentions the slogan, “Crete – Land of Values”. This is in fact a brand created by the Region of Crete through the Agronutritional Cooperation of Crete, based in Heraklion, a non-profit organisation created in 2012, which is generally working in the directions suggested in Mr Angelakis’s thesis. According to its website (agrocrete.com): “It aims at supporting the agro-nutritional sector and the products of Crete, focusing on the strategic development of the primary and secondary sector and linking them directly to the tourism and catering establishments.”

To this end it has created and consolidated the brand “Crete – land of values” alongside the sub-brands of “Cretan cuisine”, “Cretan grocery”, “Cretan brunch”, “Cretan taste” and “Open wineries”. It also aims to raise awareness of the PDO and PGI marks as well as that of Organic Products, both in Crete and in Europe.

An interactive map on the Agrocrete website enables visitors to locate Cretan businesses participating in the scheme: in the Kolymbari area it is represented by local olive oil producer Terra Creta ABEE.