THE Mount Gambier district will feature in two culinary adventure television episodes that will be beamed to millions of potential tourists and consumers in China.
Regional councils are helping to bankroll two episodes of Chef Exchange, which will showcase the city’s culinary and tourism hotspots to a massive Chinese audience.
Camera crews from 57 Films yesterday roamed around the city capturing images of Umpherston Cave, Potter’s Point, the city’s central business district, as well a number of restaurants and cafes.
In a major coup, the production company has secured a highly prized run on China Central TV and Qingdao TV and will also customise content for hugely popular online platforms such as WeChat.
New statistics show Chinese travellers remain the biggest spenders in South Australia, ploughing a record $352m each year into the economy.
Chef Exchange is a culinary adventure featuring renowned Adelaide chef Jock Zonfrillo and Shandong food master Qu Jianmin, which aims to sell South Australian food, wine and tourism into China using “entertainmerce”.
Mount Gambier Mayor Andrew Lee said the project was allocated $21,000 in ratepayers’ money as part of council’s strategic plan to grow the city’s tourism economy.
Explaining Facebook was banned in China, Mr Lee said snippets of the footage would also be posted on China’s dominant WeChat social media platform.
He said posting to WeChat would tap into a significant Chinese audience.
“WeChat is very popular in China, you can promote everything – just like Facebook,” the mayor said.
He said council planned to put six 30 second snippets of the footage on WeChat.
“Council is putting a lot of effort into economic and tourism development and that’s why we put a budget aside for projects like this,” Mr Lee said.
He said the council was trying to attract international visitors to the Blue Lake city, which was already a growth spot for Chinese tourists.
Importantly, Mr Lee said the council would have the rights to use the commercial footage to promote Mount Gambier on various media platforms.
Grant District Council economic development advisor Mike Ryan said this project would be part two in the series, which previously showcased food and beverage places around Adelaide and The Barossa.
“It was broadcast on Chinese television to 180 or so cities in China and there was a subsequent deal to expand that to a significant number of other countries,” Mr Ryan said.
He said the council had given the production company a list of businesses from the Grant district with potential to be involved in the $100,000 Limestone Coast project.
While this list included wineries and hospitality venues, councillors said produce such as rock lobster should also be included.
According to 57 Films, financial contributions had been sought from a number of Limestone Coast businesses and industry associations.
“The chefs initially discover and learn the stories behind the key produce from that region,” the production company said.
“This produce is then prominently featured in the final meal Jock and Qu design to appeal to the Chinese palate.
“This pay-off meal is cooked back in China at key events such as weddings and gives the format a backdrop for authentic feedback on South Australian wine from Chinese diners.”
At Grant council’s recent meeting, elected members attached a number of conditions to the $7000 allocation to the project.
These included the need for businesses and producers in the Grant district area to be represented in the filming.
