The role of local government in creating a local product using the example of Trzcianka municipality

Abstract

For Poland, 1989 marked the beginning of a process of political changes aimed at the transition from a totalitarian state to democracy and, consequently, from a centrally planned economy to free market. The first noticeable effect of those changes was the stocking of shops with food products from all over the world. At that time, consumers were reluctant to buy products from local companies, associating them with food of inferior quality. That was followed, just like in other European Union countries, by weariness with cheap, mass produced food. As a result, regions, as well as individual cities, began to look for characteristic dishes/products which could become the “food brand” of a specific place.

The aim of the study is to indicate the role of local government in the creation of a food product recognisable for a city/region. The example used here is the municipality of Trzcianka in the Greater Poland Voivodship. The entire field research was carried out in 2021, using the diagnostic survey method. Within the framework of the research, interviews with the employees of the Trzcianka town hall and owners of local bakeries, as well as questionnaire surveys with the inhabitants of the Trzcianka municipality were carried out. The research analysis has demonstrated that, in the local entrepreneurs’ opinion, the municipal authorities’ support influences the recognisability of their products to a very large extent. As the inhabitants have reported, they gladly buy bread from Trzcianka, although they do not identify it as a local product. The research has shown that the bread from Trzcianka bakeries has not become the town’s “food brand”, in spite of having won numerous awards at national baking contests. This is due to the lack of a promotional campaign focused on a selected food product.