The Role of Metropolitan Areas in the Spatial Differentiation of Food Festivals

Abstract

Central places described in the literature as metropolitan cities or urban hubs significantly impact the socioeconomic development of their surroundings, hence the interest in their influence on the organization of local food tasting and promotion events. This paper aims to identify the spatial differentiation of food festivals in Poland, focusing on major metropolitan areas. The study presents a geostatistical analysis conducted with the use of spatial interpolation methods, with the aim of revealing the extent of the impact of metropolitan areas on the organization of food festivals, which are a determining factor in the development of a given area with the simultaneous initiation of the impact area’s own brand. The study consists of a literature review and spatial data collection regarding Polish geolocation of food festivals. Detailed analyses cover food festivals which, in terms of the number of visitors and their circumstances, could be classified as mass events, while considering their impact on the voivodship and ultimately, Poland as a whole. The results are compiled in cartographic, descriptive, and tabular forms. A synthesis was conducted separately for each voivodship. The study’s results confirm the hypothesis that the spatial autocorrelation of food festivals is related to the directionality of the major supply chains and the gradient of human movement intensity. The movements of people and cargo along this direction strongly determine key decisions regarding the organization of food festivals.

1. Introduction

Food festivals are an important part of local foodscapes. They contribute to and transform local food environments, making them more resilient and current [1]. Past studies have delivered numerous pieces of evidence on how individual festivals impact host areas. Many inquiries are seen in relation to studies related to food festivals’ role in local promotion, branding, and placemaking [2,3], entrepreneurial synergies [4,5], and location-based economic and social benefits that food festivals create and offer. Less amplified are studies about the portfolio of festivals and the interaction of individual festivals. However, the clear shortcomings of the existing studies pertain to their case study nature, and to a large extent, their partial detachment from more comprehensive contextual settings.

However, since all festivals are geographically rooted, there is a question of how festivals are spatially distributed, and what might impact their distribution. Based on the literature review, this paper argues that central places described in the literature as metropolitan cities or urban hubs significantly impact the socioeconomic development of their surroundings [6]. Given that, the paper attempts to show the spatial differentiation of food festivals in Poland, focusing on festivals related to major metropolitan areas. The study aim was determined by the clear-cut need to deepen the understanding of the geospatial interactions of food festivals with their surroundings. In particular, the paper traces the relationship of food festivals to metropolitan areas. Past studies and field observations indicate that most food festivals are localized in the vicinity of urban regions despite their inherently rural heritage. Therefore, the second reason is to test this presumption in order to understand the geographic determinants of food festival location.

2. Literature Review

2.1. Urban Areas in Spatial Development

The literature defines socioeconomic development as positive quantitative growth and qualitative change transformations. Local development means relating these quantitative and qualitative processes to the local dimension of a given territorial unit and its local community concerning the needs, preferences, and priorities specific to this level of organization of social life and to the locally recognized systems of values [7]. This development is defined as a harmonized and systematic action of the local community, local authority, and other entities functioning in the municipality, aiming at creating new and improving the existing utilitarian values of the municipality, thus creating favourable conditions for the local economy, including the establishment of spatial and ecological order [8].

Several theories of local development are examined from a socioeconomic perspective. They focus on explaining the mechanisms of local development, its factors, and spatial differentiation. The most frequently cited are the following theories: location, central place, growth poles, cumulative causes, industrial districts, and endogenous development.

Considering historical terms, but referring to spatial aspects, it was Johann Heinrich von Thünen’s concept that, for a long time, was undoubtedly considered the fundamental theory in economic spatial analysis. It assumed the fundamental economic recovery of urban agglomerations and metropolitan areas. However, the trend towards allocating capital to land and generating diverse industries brought to light a new philosophy oriented towards industry. That was the solution proposed by Alfred Weber [9]. His theory aimed to identify the point of minimum transport costs, which influenced wage-formation, concerning business locations [10]. The importance of the location factor in transport costs was also highlighted during that period. Consequently, this provided the basis for the formulation of theses on the choice of the optimal location of a business.

The present-day opinion of the supremacy of large cities in spatial development has only sometimes been of primary importance. Mainly, if one were to refer to the work of Andreas Predöhl, who, from the beginning of his research activity, highlighted that there was no connection between general economic theory and the theories regarding industry or agriculture. By introducing the concept of substitution as a spatial factor and, simultaneously, as a function of relative prices and transport costs, he demonstrated that production and location are two aspects of the same issue. Additionally, location itself turned out to be a particular economic problem which was referred to as rational choice [11]. Additionally, there is an apt assumption from this period that if space were continuous, location determinants would be location rent and transport rent [10]. Such an approach undoubtedly fits in with today’s problem of developing the meetings industry, particularly food festival organization. These problems of space continuity strengthen the conviction that the theories of Alfred Weber and Johann Heinrich von Thünen are cases of Andreas Predöhl’s general theory of central places.

Indeed, the theory acknowledged two forces in the expected behaviour of vendors and customers, stating that locational arrangements of different types resulted from their actions. Consumers seek to minimize expenditure while producers seek to maximize profits, naturally considering the greatest possible territorial coverage of the market. The above situation can be seen in the leading economic centers along the northwest axis of Gdańsk-Toruń-Warsaw-Kraków. These centers boast maximum profitability, also from promoting their local tourist product, which is often offered by adjacent, peripheral towns.

The literature very often emphasizes that the main determinants of the volume of tourist demand are strong, natural, and anthropogenic assets [12]. Additionally, these can be found nowadays in rural rather than urban locations. However, a place itself, the locus, is sometimes unable to resist the forces of urban agglomeration. This can be seen in the considerations of August Lösch who introduced distance as a third dimension into the general equilibrium model, which combines the production location and the theory of cities and economic regions. This lay directly in the essence of understanding the location of diverse economic activities such as events, culinary events, or meeting festivals that, according to Lösch, will never be evenly distributed. Therefore, his research resulted in the construction of hexagonal nets, similar to a honeycomb, reflecting the market area for a given commodity [11]. Additionally, their interconnection in network systems should lead to the defining of a theory of economic regions, which will eventually be incorporated into the network systems [13].

The theory of hexagonal nets in the industry of food festivals shows quite a strong convergence, particularly when considering the dispersion of events offering food tasting and cooking. What is typical of this type of event is the presence of regularities of a spatial nature. Therefore, studies on the subject use tools borrowed from classical statistics, econometrics, and modern geostatistics.

2.2. Food Festivals—Location and Importance

In the most general terms, food festivals are defined as events focusing on food products. Through planning, organization, and purposefulness, these festivals meet the main assumptions of event management. It is worth emphasizing that culinary festivals are present in almost all human cultures and are a popular form of presenting original food products [14,15]. In this approach, food is becoming an increasingly important tourism element, known as culinary or food tourism. It is of great importance in creating the potential for increasing the sustainability of tourism, strengthening the socioeconomic conditions, and the broader local economy [2]. This is important because food is a cultural reference point containing unique information about products and culture in its geographical location [4]. It should also be emphasized that, along with the growing popularity of culinary tourism, there has been an increase in the number of food festivals [16]. These festivals allow visitors to taste the local cuisine and simultaneously learn about the local culture [17,18].

Culinary festivals support local development on many levels. In economic terms, they allow exhibitors to present their products, which are often unique and made of local resources [19]. The vendors are often farmers or small family businesses for whom it is an opportunity to sell their food products [5,20,21,22].

At the social level, food festivals contribute to supporting sustainable social development, allowing the preservation of the traditions, culture, and identity of the area, based on local products. In addition, food festivals are associated with the cultural meaning of belonging to the nearest city or region [23]. Another important social and economic function of culinary festivals is providing jobs [19,21,24]. Festivals contribute to building social capital through a sense of community and place [25,26,27].

Regarding the location of food festivals, it should be emphasized that they are organized in rural areas [27,28,29], and urban areas [22,30,31]. It is worth noting that culinary festivals usually occur in large cities and neighboring areas, not in peripheral rural areas. This is due to cities having higher level of capital, as well as tourist and population potential [32].

In the context of festivals, it is also worth mentioning the COVID-19 pandemic, which greatly impacted the entire industry. The contemporary dynamics of ongoing processes in the politico-economic as well as in the sociocultural spheres are leading to a change in interest in areas whose development strategies have already been established. In particular, the large-scale introduction of the lockdowns associated with the COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increased interest in what is happening in our immediate environment [33]. Almost from the outset, people began to get to know their environment, i.e., housing estates, neighborhoods, towns, whose positive features people began to discover. The emergency redefined the beauty of nature, the environment, and localism, which is linked to the place of residence, with a minimal radius. The effects of the pandemic began to be felt in almost every area of society, including the meetings industry [34].

Much emphasis was placed on the role of local communities, where great development opportunities were seen together with undiscovered assets that could differentiate other areas and even identify elements that could promote hitherto inactive areas. Unfortunately, all these were hampered by the pandemic. As a result, the event industry, including festivals, meetings, conferences, exhibitions, or sporting events—considered one of the most expansive forms of tourism—[35,36], ceased to operate for a certain period. The unexpected absence of meetings, yielding substantial economic benefits and sometimes being the primary source of income in many places [37], unsettled the balance of the financial sector linked to tourism. Additionally, the regional directionality of festival development [38], which had so far provided tangible and intangible benefits to local communities [39], was put to the test, mainly in terms of wider socioeconomic development. However, it should not be forgotten that events are social, cultural, and environmental phenomena that significantly influence sustainable development [40]. This is also confirmed by Fredline’s research, according to which, events bring substantial economic, entertainment, social, and developmental value [41]. In addition, festivals and events impact sub-regional growth and provide both real and imperceptible benefits to the local community. Each year, many visitors attend events and festivals, which contributes to the promotion of local products and fosters local cultural awareness, generates job opportunities, and boosts local economies [42].

3. Research Materials and Methods

When considering the specific character of the organization of culinary festivals, it can clearly be seen that it stems from the regional development strategy for tourism.

At every level of development, from local to provincial, national and international, the promotional of local products is integral to the outward identity of a place, sometimes being an entire sub-region or a whole country, ultimately becoming a national asset [43].

This also follows from the premise underpinning the promotional construct: “think globally and act locally”. It is not a new trend in tourism, but after the COVID-19 crisis, it has gained importance. The main reason for this is to encourage diverse forms of tourism linked to nature and the environment, and to promote the integration of tourism into local communities [44].

Evidence of this is provided by a report published by Hotel Technology & Marketing Trends 2018, which shows that slow travel is gaining popularity. Particularly after the tight restrictions during the pandemic, there is an observably increased preference for longer stays in one place, following the principle: slow, insightful, unique, instead of sea, sun, sand.

The trend provides a great opportunity to promote places or regions that have so far only been visited occasionally by tourists. This has obviously, to an extent, been brought about by the pandemic, which has made tourists want to slow down, to reflect, and to stop in their pursuit of money. One could venture to say that in a sense, the crisis has provided an opportunity for the revival of the industry, paving the way for new developments, involving an interest in the local environment and a reminder of the value of enjoying food and drink in natural surroundings.

When defining the significance and role of food festivals in demonstrating the full value of local products, it seems worthwhile to refer to the theory of econometrics. Since we are talking about culinary events, which are a tourism market subject, one can identify relevant regularities in mass processes. Taking each observation, such as a food festival, separately, we can see that it is of an accidental nature [45]; there are differences between individual events. Although there certain patterns common to all of them, there are also differences which are specific to each event [46].

Considering the culinary event as a multidimensional event, it can be said that in econometric terms it is a fact. To define the factors that shape it, we apply the principle, tempus, locus, homo, casus et fortuna regit factum, which is captured in the pentagon of sources of causal forces in economics [47] (Figure 1).

The pentagon makes it possible to build a set of factors that influence, for instance, the shaping, the atmosphere or the event coverage, etc., while the analysis of its factor is one of the econometric methods. These methods reveal the influence of both qualitative and quantitative variables on the quality of a food festival.

However, the abovementioned accident (a kind of random variable) is often the underlying cause of the subject under consideration. This is not a standard task, given the number of variables to be investigated. The use of generally available methods, mainly statistical, may therefore not yield the expected results. Therefore, it is worth employing other more advanced methods such as geostatistics in the context of the spatial autocorrelation of food festivals. The incorporation of spatial interpolation in these methods proves to be extremely useful. In view of the fact that during data collection, we often obtain only residual data from the event industry market alongside the gaps in spatial data, which is not due to the ineptitude of the researchers but is often caused by other human factors (e.g., general reluctance to fill in questionnaires, or vendors’ unwillingness to giving in-depth interviews).

In this case, geostatistical methods are characterized by their high capacity to estimate feature values without data [48,49].

To show the spatial autocorrelation of food festivals, it was considered appropriate to propose the following hypothesis: the spatial autocorrelation of food festivals is related to the directionality of the main supply chains and the intensity gradient of the movement of people. The movement of people and cargo along the directional gradient itself is the primary determinant for making key decisions regarding the organization of food festivals. Although, given the constraints in the times of the COVID-19 crisis, this study attempts to answer questions regarding the major and specific directionality of the impact of food festivals.

As part of the preliminary work related to the analyzed subject of the research, the topic of food festivals in Poland was familiarized by studying the literature on the subject, including scientific publications. This was followed by formulating the main objective, which follows directly from the collected research material.

In the study, the analysis was divided into two parts. The first focused on determining the general and specific location of the food festivals by provinces (voivodships). Structuring the research material proved to be rather difficult with regard to the categorization of events, as they differ considerably from one another in terms of the festival scenario and accompanying events, which are sometimes associated with the celebration of various holidays and are not related to the main theme of the event. Therefore, for the purpose of this study, data were divided into four areas: general location, specific location, estimated number of staff, and coverage of the event’s impact on the sub-region.

The basis for these analyses were, in particular, the authors’ own field and research inventory. The basis for research in metropolitan areas was the analysis of historical data, which made it possible to identify areas with a high saturation of events and to identify potential directions of action. Undoubtedly, an important element was the existing database in the marshal’s offices, which also reflected the tightening of event areas. The reconstruction of the archival database was enhanced by the addition of data from the literature and databases from spatial information systems that were analyzed in the individual study areas. The final event database was created based on a comparative analysis with planning documentation and data from industry websites. The latter were divided into data from proprietary event websites and data from social networking sites.

The obtained results were summarized in a tabular form, using available applications, including MS Excel, based on which component of the initial segregation of data was being carried out, thus enabling the implementation of data into GIS tools for the final data processing. The process of the initial phase of data processing was based on identifying events, which was carried out using the internet. There were often errors in determining the coordinates, or in confusing data, i.e., conflating latitude and longitude. In connection with the above, occasionally, in some voivodships, there was a clear need to identify an event by its statistical code, i.e., its postal code. This course of action brought about much better results and confirmed the position’s accuracy on the Poland map.

Part two of the analysis entailed the selection of survey tools and GIS pre-processing of spatial data, geostatistical interpolation of the data, and classification of event impacts.

In the above analysis, the spline with barriers tool was used, where areas inactive in terms of event organization were excluded from the interpolation. This tool employs a mathematical function to estimate values, which minimizes the overall curvature of the surface, thus resulting in a smooth surface that passes through the starting points. Generally speaking, it can be considered as a tool analogous to the bending of a rubber sheet to pass through known points, while minimising the curvature of the surface. The method fits a mathematical function to a certain number of the nearest input points while passing through sample points [50,51].

The density of food festivals was determined by generating a centroid of polygonal representations of events. Based on the resulting layer, a heatmap-type interpolation was performed based on the proximity and density of events. For comparison purposes, an additional check of the achieved results was made with the use of the inverse distance weighting method, which, being the basis for interpolation, takes into account weighted averages of the values measured at points which will be in the vicinity of the interpolation point [52].

The work preceding the in-depth analyses relied on literature studies and on spatial data on the geolocalization of food festivals in Poland. The in-depth analyses focused on culinary events which, in terms of the number of visitors and the event scenarios, could be classified as mass events, also taking into account their impact on the whole voivodship area and ultimately, on the area of Poland. The results were compiled in illustrative, descriptive, and tabular forms.

The synthesis was conducted separately for each voivodship. However, due to the purpose of the study, the conclusions refer to the monitored area of Poland, and they address theoretical and planning issues and indicate new research fields. The structure of the study is illustrated in Figure 2.

4. Autocorrelation of Food Festivals in Poland

In the search for an answer to the spatial autocorrelation of culinary events, the influence of location on the success of an event should be examined in almost every case. On the one hand, location is an important exogenous factor that accumulates other variables such as an event’s atmosphere, its success, the measure of attractiveness and accessibility, and its cultural value or financial added value. On the other hand, when looking at an event in terms of investment profitability, i.e., the return on capital invested in the organization of an event, any preliminary analyses begin at the stage of examining the volume of vehicle traffic and the movement of people in the context of their day-to-day functions.

This process results from established knowledge about the likelihood of potential customers attending an event. The intensity determines the emergence of new food festivals that provide revenue for the location, which is nothing other than the location rent. This is evidenced by the distribution and density of events in Poland linked to the general flow of goods on the main transport routes (Figure 3); interpolation—heat map; canal 1 (gray).

The above geostatistical analysis reveals that the concentration of food festivals refers to the directionality of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T), which includes: road, rail, air, sea, and river routes that are the most important means of connection with regard to the development of the European Union, as well as infrastructure points such as sea, air, and inland ports as well as road–rail terminals [53] (Figure 4).

The latitudinal transport directionality associated with the functioning of the TEN-T network entails ensuring complete territorial cohesion of the EU and facilitating the free movement of people and goods. It is essential to link the network itself to the nodal points—the seaports. The efficient use of sea waterways has resulted in the foregrounding of intermodal transport, which plays a paramount role nowadays. Freight economics, particularly the increase in fuel prices, have made waterways (rivers, seas, and oceans) more attractive as a mode of transport [54].

Given the above, the intensity of food events is closely linked to freight transport channels and access to road infrastructure, demonstrating people’s mobility and willingness to travel quickly. In addition, the efficient transport system within the European Union contributes to the popularization (still imperfect) of the market for food events, while stimulating the economic growth of local communities and improving the competitiveness of sub-regions.

However, with the above in mind, it is challenging to recognize which region sets the directional azimuth. The dispersion of events in Poland is quite considerable and does not seem orderly at times, despite the reference to the latitudinal arrangement of supply chains. Therefore, an essential part of the study on the investigated issue should be an analysis of the radial impact (the impact on the area, usually the administrative area) of the main event kernel, i.e., the point with the highest concentration of activity. For this purpose, the study uses kernel estimation, which allows spatial resolution to be taken into account, recognizing that phenomena such as festivals often have a point-like character and that their identification is only possible at selected measurement points.

5. Kernel Estimation of Food Festivals—A Case Study

Kernel estimation is one of the major geostatistical tools aimed at modelling a smoothed surface representing a density dependent on the concentration of points in the surrounding area [55]. The following formula gives the kernel density estimator:

$$f\left(x\right)=\frac{1}{m{h}^n}\sum _{i=1}^{m}K(\frac{x-x_i}{h})$$

where:

• m—the random sample size,
• n—dimensions of the space (event coverage),
• h—positive real number (smoothing parameter),
• K—a function satisfying the conditions:

$$\begin{gathered} {\int }_{R^n}^{}K\left(x\right)dx=1 \\ K\left(x\right)=K\left(-x\right) \forall x\in R^n \\ K\left(0\right)\ge K\left(x\right) \end{gathered}$$

The density function depends on the distance parameter. If the distance increases, the function flattens dramatically. In estimating the density of an organized event, or a group of events assigned to a monitored area, each measurement object is replaced by a value calculated according to the probability density function. The function values are then summed to obtain the aggregate area or continuous density field [56].

The value of the smoothing parameter of the function has a major impact on the quality of the kernel estimator. Too small a value results in the appearance of a large number of local extrema, which can lead to spatial blurring in such a way that the actual event, or group of dominant events, is not perceived. On the other hand, too large values of the parameter, h, result in excessive smoothing of the estimator, eventually leading to blurring of the examined feature of a particular distribution [57].

This is confirmed by the results of a spatial analysis of food events by voivodship in Poland, which are presented in the study.

Based on the results of observations of food events in 16 voivodships, samples of different sizes were drawn randomly, due to a different number of registered events. Based on the estimation results, dependence was established on a form of the density function estimator, on the sample size and the value of the smoothing parameter. A kernel estimation of the event density function based on a specific sample in a given voivodship revealed unimodal trends with dispersion in different parts of the polygon (voivodship area).

The extracted heat maps showing the density of events indicate rather significant spatial variation, which necessitated the establishment of some classification validity. During the analysis, it was found that the heat accumulations (estimation kernels) in the voivodships are not centrally located in the polygons (administrative areas of the voivodships), and thus, their impact on space will differ significantly. Therefore, clustering was adopted into three space impacts:

• Centrifugal impact—when the kernel is very close to the center of the polygon, i.e., in the centroid of the administrative voivodship area.
• Peripheral impact—when the kernel is located peripherally within the polygon but not on the border of the voivodship administrative area.
• Extreme peripheral impact—when the kernel is located exactly at the polygon’s boundary.

The analysis of the spatial autocorrelation of food events led to the conclusion that the main reason for an event being classed as centrifugally impactful is its location in the proximity of the leading city, as in the case of the Lubuskie Voivodship, with its major city being Zielona Góra; and the Łódzkie Voivodship, where Łódź is a growth engine. Additionally, in some voivodships such as Kujawsko-Pomorskie, the study found a centroid triangle consisting of the cities of Bydgoszcz-Toruń-Grudziądz, which radiates throughout the entire area of the voivodship (Figure 5).

In the group of voivodships classified as having a peripheral impact, a similar pattern should occur. However, the apparent dominance of voivodship capitals is sometimes supplanted by localities that are so-called tourist gems, both in cultural and tourism terms. An example is the Lubelskie Voivodship, where the kernel location estimator is not Lublin, the voivodship capital city, but Kazimierz Dolny, with its superb cultural and tourist value. The voivodships with kernels located in voivodship capitals are Pomorskie with Gdańsk, Śląskie with Katowice, Małopolskie with Kraków, and Mazowieckie with Warsaw. An interesting example is the Zachodniopomorskie voivodship, which Gorzów Wielkopolski, a city in the adjacent voivodship, strongly influences. Szczecin, the capital of Zachodniopomorskie, does not significantly influence the province in terms of the dissemination of food festivals (Figure 6).

The third category consists of voivodships that are under the influence of locations in other voivodships, or instances where the kernel estimators are located on the borders of polygons, e.g., the Warmian–Masurian voivodship remaining under the influence of the city of Gdańsk. An interesting case is the Opolskie voivodship which is strongly influenced by the city of Katowice from the south-east and the city of Wrocław from the north-west (Figure 7).

Kernel estimation has been used for many years and in many areas [58], but very few studies employ it for spatial analyses in the study of food festivals. An example of this method’s applications is the estimation of population density and structure [59]. Modelling the surface representing the density of event-related phenomena also allows the identification of the relationships between these phenomena. Modeling a surface representing the density of event-related phenomena also helps to identify correlations among them. Moreover, the use of kernel estimation for the spatial analysis of food events involves assessing not only the density but also the intensity of a given phenomenon.

6. Discussion

In accordance with the article’s aim, the spatial diversity of food festivals in Poland has been shown, with particular emphasis on major metropolitan centers.The analysis of the role of central places in the spatial differentiation of food festivals can lead to the conclusion that the basic determinant of the initiation of cultural festivals are centers playing a significant cultural, national, and historical role in the context of broadly understood culinary heritage. Additionally, although culinary routes are mostly located in rural areas, it urban centers, mainly large voivodship capitals, that are the driving force of the development of cultural events. An example of this is the orientation of the European Culinary Heritage Route or the famous Baltic–Adriatic corridor [60]. The sizes of cities, and even more so, voivodship capital cities, determine development and foster closer ties among manufacturers of goods, producers of culinary specialities, and external actors, thanks to whom products can reach different consumer niches. This is because agritourism, or family businesses, do not have as many opportunities to reach their audience, as is the case with the close cooperation of commercial event providers. It has its benefits because, through networking with other suppliers and participating in festivals, they can reach more tourists, which in turn leads to more visits to their website (being the main means of identification of the vendor and producer). The very contact with other businesses helps to establish further cooperation and, as a result, new culinary associations or foundations can be established.

The spatial autocorrelation of food festivals clearly signals that historical and cultural heritage is the primary determinant of the food festivals to be held. New festivals appearing on the map are not able to compete with traditional, branded events. However, the emergence of new promotional tools that seek to advertize other locations attractive to the meetings industry through the use of social networks is noteworthy. Thanks to innovative outreach techniques, a relatively substantial increase in the number of visitors and vendors can be seen at festivals that have hitherto lacked a specific brand. However, food festivals are mainly advertized on websites in Polish. The absence of written text in other languages contributes to a degree of cultural isolation, akin to stating that one is promoting a product and simultaneously limiting its exposure to customers from abroad.

Examining the distribution of food festivals across Poland reveals that, in addition to their latitudinal directionality, events are arranged along the ancient Vistula shipping route, which is considered to be Poland’s primary trading route. In the past, towns along the Vistula river benefited economically from the its trade, thus becoming more prosperous and infrastructurally developed [61]. Places for the berthing, loading, and unloading of goods developed a kind of genius loci within the local community, and important centers of local identity [62]. Local traditions were a differentiating factor for communities, including in terms of traditional local cuisine [63,64]. That trend dates to the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, when new crops began to be introduced, which initiated culinary revolutions [65].

Such tendencies in local communities have undoubtedly given rise to the modern concept of culinary tourism, which consists of visiting food shows, festivals, restaurants, and specific places where tasting and experiencing food is a major travel attraction [66]. Of course, there are many definitions of culinary tourism. Some refer to cooking and eating [67], while others refer merely to the savouring of food [68,69,70]. Some definitions link culinary tourism to visiting places such as factories or food- and alcohol-processing plants [71].

Additionally, while it originally had genuinely elitist connotations, as participants were among the wealthiest members of society, nowadays, given the rate of motorization, all social classes have equal access to food events. Therefore, the intensified directionality of the movement of people and the establishment of the major corridor for transport supply chains have become paramount in planning a food festival. This is confirmed by the map of food festival density with a marked expressway network shown in relation to the to the historic Vistula route (Figure 8).

Undoubtedly, the network of expressways is connected with the former shipping route of the Vistula. The navigable river influenced the formation of the silhouettes of the Vistula towns, which drew material benefits from trade, and thus became rich [61].

It can be assumed that the Vistula river has influenced economic and architectural development since ancient times. An example of this influence is the medieval landscape dominated by castles, churches, monastery complexes, or town halls, which appeared in the vicinity of the river bank, thus constituting a place of trade. An example of the above are the panoramas of cities seen from the perspective of the Vistula, e.g., in Kraków, Warsaw, Płock, Toruń, Grudziądz, Gdańsk, which significantly stand out against the map of Poland, but are still growth poles, including important regions that contribute to the maintanence of culinary heritage (Figure 9 and Figure 10).

The results of comparative analyses of the autocorrelation of culinary events with the Vistula route can be contrasted with the views of famous anthropogeographers, such as Johann Herder, Karl Ritter, or Friedrich Ratzel, who demonstrated the relationship between the natural environment and human activity at different spatial scales, from a global perspective to individual countries and regions [72]. In particular, Ratzel’s dynamic portrayal of humans in space (the world) and nature indicates that the formation of trade routes and cultural centers results from erratic community transformations. The impact of competition among people that he highlighted has undoubtedly resulted in the development of distinct local identity, into which the food festivals are integrated.

When considering the current geopolitical situation in the context of making predictions of the future, it can be concluded that the above analyses on the directionality and intensity of food festivals will not change despite latitudinal solid connections in Warsaw–Vilnius and Warsaw–Lviv, or the Frankfurt-on-Oder–Brest transit route. This has also been confirmed by the historical development of the Baltic–Adriatic transport corridor and the high volumes of intermodal transport [73]. The non-military crisis, resulting from the pandemic, which significantly affected the operation of the meetings industry, is the most significant disaster to have ever hit the event sector. However, with the emergence of another crisis, this time a military one along the border with Ukraine, the culinary tourism industry is being subjected to another test of survival. This is illustrated by forecasts for Poland from experts who primarily predict a deep recession in the European Union and the recurrence of infections and lockdowns, as well as a slump in investments and massive bankruptcies (Figure 11).

Therefore, forecasting further development of the food festival industry requires the analysis of many variables, including random ones, which should be viewed in econometric terms, assuming the impact of diverse factors, both quantitative and qualitative, even on a single event.

Research conducted before the pandemic and the initiation of a global energy crisis should also be considered. Indeed, having analyzed the archival suggestions it can be concluded that:

• With regard to the impact on the development of economic management centers, what plays a vital role in the development of a given center and region are major companies generating multiplier effects by attracting additional specialized entities.
• With regard to the shaping of the transport system, it is worth considering a change in the course of the Berlin-Warsaw-Minsk-Moscow corridor, which would strengthen the position of Bialystok and Hrodna, thus increasing exposure for the Masurian region [74].
• In terms of regional development, there is a noticeable lack of detailed studies on changes in the settlement system and in demographic processes, including concentration and depopulation.

The above indicates that phenomena are mostly considered at the national level, where data are aggregated according to administrative rather than functional divisions and where rural municipalities in peripheral areas are treated in the same way as those in the suburban zones of the largest metropolitan areas. Such an approach should influence the shaping of optimal directions of change, aiming at improved access to food festivals. It should also help identify areas of low competitiveness with a simultaneous cause-and-effect analysis. In addition, changes should be made with regard to, for example, current guidelines for the national spatial development policy [75] accounting for the longitudinal/ latitudinal arrangement of transport corridors [76] that did not predict the socioeconomic blockade on the eastern flank of NATO.

7. Conclusions

The analysis has revealed that the spatial concentration of food festivals is related to the directionality of the Trans-European Transport Network TEN-T, which consists of road, rail, air, sea, and river transit routes, as well as infrastructure points (sea, air, and inland ports, and road and rail terminals). This network affects territorial cohesion and the free movement of people and goods. The intensity of food festivals is related to the channels of freight transport and access to infrastructure, as these elements affect people’s mobility and their willingness to travel. A well-functioning communication system affects the development of the food festival industry, and thus, also affects the economic growth of local communities and the improvement of the competitiveness of regions.

Thanks to the spatial autocorrelation analysis, it has been revealed that food festivals, due to their locations, may have differing impacts on their area. In the case of festivals with a centrifugal impact, the main reason for this is the festival’s location near the region’s major city (provincial city). In the case of a festival with a peripheral impact, the center of impact on the region is a town of great cultural and touristic importance. Finally, a festival located in one region may also affect the neighboring region.

Thus, the spatial autocorrelation of food festivals indicates that historical and cultural heritage is an important determinant of the organization of food festivals. In addition, the study of the distribution of food festivals in Poland shows that, in addition to a strong latitudinal direction, events are also organized along the former Vistula shipping route, considered to be Poland’s main trade route.