The Minister for Tourism, Martin Ferguson AM MP, today announced a $108,000 upgrade of the Bruny Island Cheese Corporation in Tasmania.
Minister Ferguson announced $54, 110 in TQUAL Grants funding to contribute to the construction of new visitor facilities including a new undercover seating area, expansion of the tasting and sales area, and the addition of a café. The project will nearly triple the current visitor capacity of the cheese business.
Over 600,000 visitors to Hobart and its surrounding regions participated in food and wine tourism activities last year. Food and wine tourism has experienced steady growth since 2000, against declines in overall domestic and international visitor numbers.
Minister Ferguson said: "The Bruny Island Cheese Corporation is a leading tourism business in the region, providing jobs for the local community. These upgrades will attract even more visitors to Bruny Island to sample the produce, food and wine at this growing tourism attraction."
Through the TQUAL Grants program the Australian Government is investing almost $8.3 million towards seventy innovative tourism projects across Australia. These targeted investments assist the industry to explore new market opportunities, expand the range of services they can offer, promote growth and contribute to job creation throughout the Australian tourism industry.
The Australian Government is also investing in tourism marketing to support further growth in international and domestic visitor numbers. In Australia, workers have accumulated 123 million days of annual leave, worth $33 billion in wages. The Australian Government and Tourism Australia's 'No Leave No Life' campaign encourages workers to use their leave to discover Australia. Minister Ferguson said: "I expect Bruny Island to benefit from extra day trips and short stays resulting from this campaign."
Tourism Australia's new $150 million global marketing campaign 'There's Nothing Like Australia' will further showcase Australia to the world. Minister Ferguson said: "This new campaign will stimulate international interest in Australian tourism by inviting people to share their favourite place or experience and load personalised images and stories online."
Tourism is worth more than $1 billion to the Tasmanian economy, and directly employs 13,700 people.