Heritage and Tourism Processes in the Sweet Milk Provincial Fest in Cañuelas, Argentina

Abstract

In this article we analyze the process of how the local Sweet Milk Fest was created in the municipality of Cañuelas, province of Buenos Aires (Argentina), in a country where this food is considered part of its national gastronomy. In particular, we examine the strategies implemented by certain actors who manage to establish that event as a provincial one. Hence, we identified and examined documents and tourist-heritage recognitions that were interwoven around historic facts to build the foundations of the creation of the Fest. The investigation allowed us to examine the particularities of this process, the actors involved, the resignification and transformations that the celebration has had; tensions emerged and strategies implemented to justify the extend of its scale of activation (local to provincial). We conclude that the latter process was possible due to the action of certain actors who used their network of contacts and expertise to build discourses justifying the relevance of the Fest as a cultural heritage and tourism product. These heritage and tourism valorizations help to promote greater visibility of the locality in order to improve its local economy through tourism, new investments and logistics support from the private sector as well as the provincial government.