An Examination of Food Tourism as a Driver of Rural Economic Development in Nigeria: Evidence from Agricultural Heartland Communities in Benue and Kebbi States

This study examines the developmental potential of food tourism as a driver of rural economic development in two of Nigeria's leading agricultural producing states, Benue State in the North Central zone and Kebbi State in the North West zone, generating a contextually grounded framework for agri-food tourism in Nigerian rural economies. Food tourism, encompassing culinary experiences, farm visits, food festivals, and gastronomy heritage trails, represents an underexplored development pathway for Nigerian rural communities whose agricultural identities have not yet been effectively translated into tourism products. A comparative case study design is adopted with qualitative and quantitative data generated through household surveys of 280 farming community members, 28 in-depth interviews with food producers, local government tourism officers, agribusiness entrepreneurs, and rural development agency representatives, and economic value chain mapping exercises in four communities across the two states. Sustainable rural livelihoods framework and food tourism value chain analysis are applied as complementary analytical approaches. Findings reveal that food tourism value chain participation generates income premiums of between 40 and 80 percent above commodity market prices for participating farm households in pilot programmes, while also stimulating secondary employment in food preparation, guiding, and accommodation. However, infrastructure constraints, particularly rural road quality and cold chain absence, are identified as binding constraints on food tourism commercialisation. The study develops a Nigerian Agri-Food Tourism Development Framework with differentiated intervention priorities for agricultural, tourism, and infrastructure development actors. Keywords: food tourism, rural development, agri-food tourism, Benue State, Kebbi State