regulatory and policy framework. This approach not only reflects broader trends in sustainable rural development but also institutionalises a model whereby the agrarian economy is leveraged for touristic and gastronomic purposes. The legal definition and requirements for agrotourism are laid down in a sublegal act which specifies the criteria and procedures for the certification of agrotourism activity,38 and is amended repeatedly to reflect the growing interest in this field of economy. Under this regulatory instrument, agrotourism is a combination of farming and tourism. It is a certified category of economic activity that must meet a clearly delineated set of conditions. These include ownership or legal use of agricultural land, the cultivation of crops and/or the raising of livestock, and the provision of accommodation and meals to visitors using products primarily derived from the farm’s own production.39 The legal framework thereby creates a direct nexus between land, production, and consumption, fostering a model in which the visitor experience is rooted in local agricultural realities. The Agrotourism primary function is to support sustainable rural development by promoting environmentally responsible practices, preserving local traditions, and creating new markets for regional agricultural products. As a form of tourism rooted in the use of local resources, agrotourism advances alternative development models that strengthen the agricultural base while safeguarding intangible cultural heritage. It thus represents a legal and policy mechanism through which sustainability, territorial identity, and food culture converge in support of cohesive rural transformation.40 As highlighted in the scholarly discourse, gastronomy-based tourism enables destinations to differentiate themselves through their culinary heritage, thereby transforming local food systems into strategic assets for sustainable development.41 From a normative perspective, this integration of food and territory contributes to the preservation of traditional know-how and the valorisation of local food systems. Agrotourism establishments serve as physical and legal spaces where cultural landscapes, culinary heritage, and environmental sustainability converge. They are, in effect, sites of regulated transmission—where the law conditions not only economic activity but also the preservation and presentation 38 Decision of Council of Ministers no 22, dated 12.1.2018 “On the approval of the criteria and procedures for the certification of agrotourism activities and the construction of structures/buildings for their function”, amended OG 3/2018; OG 142/2018; OG 114/2019; OG 83/2023. 39 Ibid. 40 Ibid, paragraph (2) and (2.1.) 41 Anne-Mette Hjalager and Greg Richards, Tourism and Gastronomy (Routledge 2003). 477 SUSTAINABLE GASTRONOMY IN ALBANIA
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