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E-PROCEEDING OF THE 6TH INTERNATIONAL
CONFERENCE ON SOCIAL SCIENCES RESEARCH 2017
E-PROCEEDING OF THE 6TH INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON SOCIAL SCIENCES RESEARCH 2017 (ICSSR 2017).
(E-ISBN: 978-967-0792-23-1). 4th December 2017, Melia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Organized By https://Worldconferences.Net Page 44
LINKING IMAGE AND SATISFACTION OF FOOD TOURISM IN
PENANG, MALAYSIA
Arni Abdul Gani, Mazlina Mahdzar, Rosmaliza Mohamad, Nurhidayah Abdullah,
Zurena@Rena Shahril Faculty of Hotel and Tourism Management
Universiti Teknologi MARA, Puncak Alam Campus, 42300, Bandar Puncak Alam, Selangor
Khairil Wahidin Awang Faculty of Hospitality, Tourism and Wellness, Universiti Malaysia Kelantan, 16100, Pengkalan
Chepa, Kelantan
ABSTRACT
Abstract – Food has gained enormous potential to become tourism attraction in a destination. Through
food, people has the opportunity to experience culture and connects with the locals. Furthermore, it
enhances travel experience and helps to strengthen other tourism products. Malaysia brands itself as
the melting pot of Asia, with dishes from different races mix in harmonize and complement each other.
While this brand may induce tourists’ visits, it is critically important that the correct images of food are
being positioned to enhance tourists’ satisfaction. It is undeniable that satisfaction can affect tourists’
visitation to the destination and can encourage spreading of a positive word of mouth. Therefore, the
main objectives of this paper is first; to identify the image of food tourism in Penang and secondly to
examine how these images affect satisfaction of tourists in Penang. A correctional analysis was also
conducted to determine the relationship between image of food and satisfaction. Data was collected
through a structured survey among tourists in popular food spots around Penang Island. Results
indicate that dining atmosphere, food features and food palate are all contributing factors to the
satisfaction of the tourists. Significant positive relationships were found between food image and
tourists’ satisfaction. Overall, this study contributes by providing vital information on the images of
food tourism. This information would be useful to enhance the development and promotion of food
tourism in Malaysia.
Field of Research: Food tourism, gastronomy tourism, local food, satisfaction, food image
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1. Introduction
Culinary, gourmet and gastronomic tourism are similar definitions for food tourism (Boniface, 2003;
Hall & Sharples, 2003; Long, 2004) where “food tourism” can be defined as visiting food exhibitions,
food festivals, restaurants and specific locations for which food tasting and experiencing food are the
primary factors for travel (Hall & Mitchell, 2000). This definition entails that food is being recognized
as one of main destination’s attribute in tourism industry. Food tourism express the idea of
experiencing other cultures through food (Wolf, 2002). Traditional cuisine and warm hospitality
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coupled with mouth-watering cuisine forms the perfect ingredient to produce a positive image to
tourists. Food can relates to tourism in many ways. Previous studies had showed that food played an
important role in touristic experience (Kivela & Crotts, 2006) and as a means to attract tourists to
destinations (Smith & Costello, 2009; Tikkanen, 2007a; Enright & Newton, 2004; Yuksel, 2001).
But past studies have also stated that people might be confused between food tourism and the
consumption of food during travel. The difference between these two is food tourism is the act of people
go to a particular destination mainly for the food and the food had become the pull factors (Boniface,
2003; Cohen & Avieli, 2004; Hall & Sharples, 2003; Hjalager, 2002). This is what they called as food
or culinary tourist. This type of tourist do some research or information gathering of what they want to
eat and where is the best place for them to eat. Whilst for consumption of food during travel is the
tourist had other motivation for them to travel to a certain place and food is not a salient factors for
them. They also eat because they have to survive and they do not usually put emphasis or being choosy
of what they have to eat.
Besides, Rimmington and Yuksel (1998) showed that food service was the most important factor
influencing tourists’ revisit intension in Turkey. The ability of foods served as both a cultural activity
and an entertainment is recognized (Hjalager, 2002; Jalis, Zahari and Othman, 2007). Local food can
be seen as a mean to explore a country’s culture, because it represent the geography, history, and people
of a country. It also represents the identity of a destination, like a symbol of a place (Okech, 2014) and
as the status and cultural identity that makes it unique from any other place (Frochot, 2003). In a simple
way, food had become the image of that particular destination. When someone mentioned about that
particular place, there will be a food that automatically came to our mind. For example, Pizza and Pasta
for Italy, Sushi for Japan and Hotdog and Sausages for Germany. All of these food had become the
symbol of those countries.
Jalis et al., (2007) had found that food is one of the new tourism product and the most relevant to the
Malaysian context. Malaysia is like a melting pot of several races that harmonize and complement each
other especially in terms of the gastronomy products. As Wolf (2002) had stated that food tourism
express the idea of experiencing other cultures through food. Malaysia served a variety of local
delicacies. From the authentic dish of a race such as Nasi Lemak and Rendang by the Malay community
to a fusion dish that served at the Indian-Muslim (who are called as Mamak) restaurant. State like
Kelantan is very famous with its traditional desserts, Perak with the mixture of Chinese and Malay food
at one spots and especially Penang with the significant Nasi Kandar and many more. Malaysian Tourism
Promotion Board (MTPB) works hard to promote Malaysia cuisines all around the world through their
Malaysia Food Promotion campaigns aiming to introduce local cuisines and promote visiting Malaysia
as food heaven destination. These campaigns were held in various cities in the world including London
and Moscow.
2. Food Tourism and Food Image
A lot of destinations around the world are currently assigning certain local foods as pull factor in
marketing and some of them are worldly recognized as the ‘must visit’ destination for their iconic food.
This makes it important to ensure that the expectations and acceptable standards for food provided by
restaurant and the staff is met. The provision of service providers to be reliable and responsive can
enhance a destination’s competitive advantage as a marketing tool (Dwyer, 2003) and safeguarding
customer satisfaction.
Even though Malaysia has a lot to offer in terms of food, the identity of Malaysian local food is rather
unclear and uncommon (Mohamed, 1994) compared to that in its neighbors especially Thailand and
Indonesia. Despite food is regard as important element in tourism industry alongside other tourism
products such as ecotourism and culture tourism (Zainal, Zali & Kasim, 2010), there are still insufficient
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consideration on the tourists’ food experience, especially in Malaysia. Recent research by Mohamad,
Omar and Mohamed (2015) had studied about aspects of holiday satisfaction in Penang for both
international and domestic tourists. Their study concluded that 4 aspects; accessibility, accommodation,
tourist amenities and food can affect tourists’ satisfaction in Penang. The inclusion of food reflects it’s
important in overall image of Penang as popular tourism destination in Malaysia. Since food was one
of the aspects that can affect the traveling experience, it is crucial for the destination management
organizations to constantly make effort to improve and enhance dining experiences in Penang. Another
past study had looked into the acceptance and perception specifically from the western tourists towards
the local food (Jalis, Zahari and Othman, 2009), which was conducted in the capital city of Kuala
Lumpur. The study revealed that the majority of western tourists perceived that Malaysia offered great
choices of tasty and freshly prepared food, snacks and beverages. They perceived that Malaysia owned
a unique and exquisite identity of food culture. In addition, the findings also demonstrated that the local
gastronomic products can be a catalyst for boosting the local economy. However, they did not looked
into tourists’ satisfaction and this element is lacking to conclude the relationship between perceptions
and satisfaction.
3. Food Tourism and Tourist Satisfaction
Satisfaction is critical as it reflects subjective client assessments of the characteristic execution
connected with the consumption experience (Cronin and Taylor, 1992). Ziethaml, Berry &
Parasuraman, (1996) mentioned that overall satisfaction is a post-purchase attitude determined by the
expectation of the customer, the quality of the product or service and also the price. The product or
service must be at least as good as it is supposed to be. This shows that in order to make the customers
feel satisfied, the producer needs to ensure that their service or product delivered well in every aspect.
In terms of travel experience, according to Crompton and Love (1995), it is also might be affected by
the social-psychological state of a person. For example the mood at that particular time and also
incidental occasions that cannot be control by the service provider like the weather. This proved that
satisfaction is mainly comes from what had been experienced and also the interaction with the
destination. As a result of being satisfied, according to Mattila and Wirtz (2001) and Evanschitzky, Iyer,
Plassmann, Niessing and Meffert (2006), customers will show a positive behavioral intention which
can be in terms of revisit intention, positive word-of-mouth and also willingness to recommend.
Customers who had a good experience with one particular product or services had a great tendency to
being loyal to it.
Tourist satisfaction is a very important factor to be evaluated in order to improve any services or product
in tourism industry and also to evaluate whether the marketing strategy is successful or not. Most of the
service providers in the industry are willing to invest in doing evaluation and improvement of their
services in order to enhance the satisfaction level of their customers (Fishbein & Manfredo, 1992). This
is because they are aware that improvement will increased visitation, revenues and also enhanced
reputation. Researchers has identified that food experience can represent an important source of
satisfaction for visitors (Ryan, 1997; Getz, 2000). Food also could affect the whole traveling experience.
Travellers will end up discussing and judged their experience mainly based on the food even if food is
not their initial consideration at first (Ardabili et. al, 2011). It can be concluded that the main factors
that should be concerned with when measuring food image are food itself and place where food is sold
which can demonstrate the uniqueness of food and food serving style with value for money
(Lertputtarak, 2012).
Satisfaction is important especially in the business where one’s perception matters and may have
significant impact on the overall portray of the food as attraction in Malaysia. Roozbeh, Ng and Boo
(2013) on the other hand studied the food experience between first timer and repeated visitors to
Malaysia. They found out that food experience contributes to the overall satisfaction among visitors to
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Malaysia. The positive perception of food experience among first-time and repeat visitors to Malaysia
shows that local food can be used in addition to other tourism products. Ironically, both researchers
suggests similar researches to take place at other location such as airport in Penang, Langkawi and Kota
Kinabalu in order to gain more colorful insights on the issue.
Responding to this suggestion and previous findings from literature mentioned, this study seeks to study
the satisfaction level of tourists’ towards local food in another popular destination for food in Malaysia.
Penang which is a state in Malaysia that is worldly known as one of the UNESCO World Heritage Site
was chosen as the food tourism destination for the study. The Minister of Tourism and Culture, Datuk
Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz in Malaymail Online (2012) said that some of Malaysia's traditional
dishes had been recognized internationally. He was quoted to mention that Penang Laksa which had
been voted as the seventh most delicious food (out of 50) in the world under the CNNGo International
Food Survey in 2012. Penang had been called as a food heaven by the local foodie but from the
perspective of international tourist, it is not yet to be confirmed. This study took a slight different view
to measure satisfaction by assessing food images which comprises of atmosphere, features and palate.
3. Conceptual Framework
Figure 1: Conceptual framework
The framework for the study was developed with modification based on previous studies by Ab Karim,
Chua, Aman, Othman and Salleh (2011) and Jalis, Zahari, Zulkifly, and Othman (2009). Food image
as independent variable is consists of 3 aspects; food dining and atmosphere, food taste and
appreciation and food features (Figure 1). Food dining and atmosphere is to measure the place,
environment and experiences during dining while food taste and appreciation consists of items
to measure food palate and it sense of appealing to the respondents. The third aspect is food
features which consists of food presentation, cooking methods and varieties. It is hypothesized
that if the image of the Penang local food is good, the tourists’ is satisfied. Based on previous
study by Leong, Othman, Adzahan and Karim (2012) had shown that the image of the food
had a direct effect on the tourist satisfaction.
Tourists’ satisfaction
Food dining and
atmosphere
Food taste and
appreciation
Food features
FOOD IMAGE
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4. Methodology
A total of 384 questionnaires were distributed to tourists at several tourists’ spots such as Gurney Drive,
Padang Kota, Batu Feringghi, various streets in Georgetown and Penang International Airport. This
sample was derived from the latest available record of international tourist arrival to Penang in 2016
(Mok, 2016). Instead of distributing questionnaires in A4 size paper that can be tedious to respondents,
this study used electronic questionnaire designed by using Google form which were more convenient.
When respondent was found, a tablet consisting of questionnaire was given for it to be completed. The
instrument was developed and adapted based on previous studies by Ab Karim et al., (2011) and Jalis
et al., (2009). Selection of respondents were done by first observing their physical features such as
being tall, different skin color compare to locals, blonde or brunette that represents common
international tourists features. Then they were asked two screening questions. The first question was
“Where are you from?” and “Have you consumed any local food in Penang?” Measures of central
tendency and other descriptive analyses were used to identify food image and satisfaction of the tourists.
A Pearson correlation coefficient was performed to determine the relationship between food image and
satisfaction.
5. Finding & Discussion
5.1 Reliability analysis
The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient value for all variables in the study revealed a range of coefficient
value from .78 to .82 accordingly. The dependent variable of subsequent career intentions scale had a
high reliability coefficient of .82 as compared to the independent variables. The independent variables
of workplace bullying and emotional dissonance had coefficient values of .78 and .79 respectively.
5.2 Descriptive statistics & analysis
The findings showed that the distribution of gender was higher for females with a total of 157 female
respondents (67.7%). On the other hand, there were 75 male respondents or 32.3 percent out of the total
respondents. The age of the respondents showed that most of them were 21 years old, 13.4% were 20
years old and the rest (15.1%) were above 21 years old.
5.2.1 The image of food tourism in Penang
The image of food tourism in Penang were measured using three aspects; food dining and atmosphere,
food taste and appreciation and food features. The table below presents the aspects and its statements.
Table 1.0: Mean score for attributes
Items N Min Max Mean SD
Food Dining And
Atmosphere
The food are clean and
safe to consume
384 3.00 7.00 5.51 0.85
The food are well
presented
384 4.00 7.00 5.67 0.78
Comfortable eating
surrounding
384 3.00 7.00 5.60 0.80
Food spots are located
in convenient places
384 4.00 7.00 5.88 0.81
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Food providers are
friendly
384 4.00 7.00 5.76 0.77
Services by food
providers are good
384 4.00 7.00 5.70 0.85
Food Taste And
Appreciation
The food are rich in
flavors
384 3.00 7.00 6.15 0.88
The food are contain a
lot of herbs and spices
384 0.00 7.00 5.93 0.80
The food are hot and
spicy
384 4.00 7.00 5.66 0.88
The food are
appealing to human
sense
384 0.00 7.00 5.95 0.96
Food Features
Food providers use
variety of cooking
method
384 0.00 7.00 5.59 0.84
There are variety of
local specialties
available
384 4.00 7.00 5.93 0.93
There are various
information guide on
the local food
384 3.00 7.00 5.50 0.92
Price of the food are
reasonable
384 3.00 7.00 5.75 0.68
High availability 384 3.00 7.00 5.80 0.92
Valid N 384
In terms of food and dining atmosphere, the highest mean score was represented by the item of “Food
spots are located in convenient places” and “food providers are friendly”. The lowest mean score
was represented by the item of “The food are clean and safe to consume”. For food taste and
appreciation, the highest mean score was represented by the item of “The food are rich in flavors” and
“food are appealing to human sense”. For food features, highest score were “There are variety of
local specialities” and “high availabilitiy”, which basically refers to easy accessible of food in
Penang. There were no alarming score for items in each of the aspects measured. It is
interesting to find out that majority of respondents whom are foreigners have a positive
perception of local food in Penang. Nonetheless, some low scores compares to others are still
valuable findings and might be helpful to further enhance dining experiences in Penang. For
example, in terms of availability of information on food in Penang, the score is just borderline
which calls for some thoughtful consideration by the authority. This shows that the majority
of the respondents agreed that Penang offers a variety of local specialities and apparently there
is not enough information available regarding the local food or maybe it is hard for them to
find it.
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5.2.2 Satisfaction of food tourism in Penang
Respondents were tested on the level of satisfaction of food tourism in Penang. The table
below presents the statements used to measure their satisfaction level.
Items N Min Max Mean SD
Penang’s local food
contributes to the
quality of my visiting
experience
384 3.00 7.00 5.89 0.86
Penang’s local food
contributes to my eating
pleasure
384 3.00 7.00 5.90 0.88
Eating Penang’s local
food adds to my visiting
enjoyment
384 4.00 7.00 6.03 0.90
The food experience in
Penang meets my
expectation
384 3.00 7.00 5.92 0.90
I experienced the culture
of Penang through its
local food
384 3.00 7.00 5.93 0.83
I will recommend
Penang’s local food to
my friends and family
384 4.00 7.00 6.14 0.80
I have a good
impression on Penang’s
local food
384 4.00 7.00 6.18 0.77
I strongly remember my
food experiences in
Penang
384 3.00 7.00 6.26 0.83
As a whole, Penang is a
good food tourism
destination
384 4.00 7.00 6.37 0.74
I will revisit Penang for
its local food
384 3.00 7.00 6.37 0.79
Valid (N) 384
Highest mean score was represented by the item of “As a whole, Penang is a good food tourism
destination” and “I will revisit Penang for its local food” respectively. This shows that the
most of the respondents agreed that Penang is a good food tourism destination. Overall, the
scores observed for satisfaction level is relieving, as it describe an appropriate level of
satisfaction among the tourists visiting Penang.
5.3 Correlation analysis
A correlation analysis was performed to determine the relationship between image and
satisfaction. The analysis revealed that all three aspects of food image has a positive
relationship with satisfaction. Food and dining atmosphere has the highest value (0.421). Thus,
proved that it has moderate positive relationship with tourists’ satisfaction level towards
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Penang’s food image. The second highest value is (0.418) contributed by the food features.
Last least value is food taste and appreciation that granted (0.416) value of the correlation
coefficient.
6. Discussions and Future Recommendation
6.1 Image of food tourism in Penang
Food tourism in Penang has gained popularity not only among the locals but also among the
foreigners. In Penang, local food is easily accessible with good and friendly food service
providers. Food is mostly well presented and comfortable dining places added a value to the
overall dining experiences. This is supported by previous findings by Thew (2015) which
stated that Malaysian hawker’s food possessed clear and positive images on price, taste,
accessible and well-presented. Aside from that, the varieties and specialties of food in Penang
is another pull factor that allure tourists to sample the local delicacies. As a foodie destination,
Penang is the labelled heaven of hawkers style street food served a lot of famous and authentic
food (Mohamad, Mohamed & Omar, 2015) which become one of the major attraction in the
island. The study also found that local food in Penang is found to be spicy but rich in flavors.
It is acknowledged that the food in Malaysia is known to be very rich in taste as they used a lot
of herbs and spices in the cooking. McKechnie (2011) stated the unique fusion of cultures and
flavors in the local Malaysian food is a proof of a harmony mix between different races in
Malaysia. Different state’s background and the fact that Malaysia is a multi-racial country, has
absolutely some degree of effects on the cooking and becoming the trademark of local
delicacies in Penang.
Apart from the positive review on the image, there were some areas that worth examining based
on the results. Thew (2015) stressed that the element of cleanliness and food safety are of
concerns and the same finding is inflicted in this study. Cleanliness and safety issues score
lesser compare to other attributes. Recommendation can be made based on the findings that is
to take control of this situation by putting more emphasize and action in ensuring hygienic
issues are well addressed in food preparation and the surrounding environment. Another
subject to take consideration is the variety and availability of information of food in Penang.
It is very important to have correct and adequate information in order to promote food tourism
and create awareness among the tourist. Whilst they might have already information available
on the internet or social media, it is imperative that authority to be alert of the type and contents
of these information. It is suggested that information to be updated regularly, include
interesting facts such as the ingredients used, originality, authenticity and some history of the
dishes.
6.2 Image and satisfaction of food tourism in Penang
The findings from this study revealed that image does have a relationship with satisfaction of
food tourism in Penang. This is supported by previous scholars who have empirically tested
the relationship between image and satisfaction. Leong et al. (2010) claimed that images are
personal values that consumers attach to a product or service characteristics. Image plays a
vital role in influencing satisfaction and many previous studies have indicated that favorable
image would lead to greater satisfaction (Lee, Lee & Lee, 2005; Karim & Chi, 2010;
Lertputtarak, 2012; Thew, 2015).
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Food in Penang is found to be an excellent tourism product to cater the needs of tourists. The
advantage of multi-racial country and the fact that Penang is one of the iconic destination in
Malaysia gives it a leverage to be known as melting pot of Malaysia. Thus, it is important that
favorable images must be created and materialized to capitulate to this demand.
Three important aspects have been identified in this study which can pilot the authority to create
successful actions. Dining and atmosphere are important considerations, as people like to be
in comfortable place and in desirable environment to enjoy food. Food presentation and good
service matters among all to ensure satisfaction to overall experience. How food taste and
appeal to the tourists also determines satisfaction. Penang food is stated to be spicy and full of
taste and yet still appealing to the tourists. This is clear indication that the local food is
pleasurable to the taste bud of foreign tourists. In addition, variety and specialty are another
important points to enhance quality of experience and overall satisfaction.
It is recommended that Penang authorities to pay attention to improve the local food’s image
and tourists’ satisfaction with their food experience. This could enhance their perception of
visiting quality and promote positive behavioral intentions among them. More actions are
needed to ensure that the hygiene issues are tackled in food service industry from the small
hawker style up to the high-end restaurant. Food hygiene is something that should not be
neglected because it can tarnish the image of the destination. It is also suggested to focus on
promoting the distinctiveness and diversity of the food in Penang especially highlighting the
uniqueness of every dish available.
6.3 Limitations
The results presented in this study is subject to the following limitations. First, the respondents
were foreigners and are grouped as westerner. Therefore, the results basically resemble this
particular group of tourists and may not be able to be generalize to other nationality. Second,
the timing and places chosen for data collection may have some effect on the overall findings.
It is necessary to take into account seasonal changes over tourists’ profiles and the level of
satisfaction.
6.4 Conclusions
Food and travel have become a symbiotic relationship in many countries around world, and
destinations are capitalizing their potential to promote their cuisine as a unique product. Penang
has managed to put the name of Malaysia in the tourism map as one of the food tourism
destination. However the image of the local food here is still remains a great challenge to be at
par with other popular gastronomy destination around the world. This study has able to provide
some insights into food tourism management in Penang. Thus is gives the destination managers
better understanding on the aspects that contribute to satisfaction mainly from the perspective
of foreign tourists. It is hopeful the findings will be able to justify some required actions to
further enhance food tourism in Penang.
Acknowledgement
This research was conducted by graduating students under course and program requirement in the
faculty.
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