MOSCOW, 6 Oct 2015: Tourism Malaysia held a Food Promotion at Turandot Restaurant today to introduce and promote Malaysia through the country’s rich and multifarious cultures and diverse cuisines.

Launched by the Minister of Tourism and Culture Malaysia Dato’ Seri Mohamed Nazri Abdul Aziz, the event gave Russian tourism industry players and media an opportunity to savour popular Malaysian food and the famous beverage teh tarik or ‘pulled tea’.

“Being in a multi-racial country, Malaysians are very lucky to be able to enjoy the many different foods and cultures brought about by the diversity of its people. Food is indeed part of our culture and eating is one of Malaysians favourite pastimes. Thus, gastronomy can be a good selling point to promote the country,” said Dato’ Seri Mohamed Nazri during the launching of the Malaysia Food Promotion.

To help prepare and promote Malaysian food at the event, Tourism Malaysia has brought along the country’s renowned celebrity chef Dato’ Chef Ismail Ahmad, who is also one of its Tourism Ambassadors. This multi-award winning chef has helped promote Malaysian food around the world, including USA, the Middle East, and Europe. He has also brought a taste of Malaysia to Japan, South Africa, Cambodia, and UK, and conducted cooking demonstrations to promote wonderful Malaysian cuisine.

The Malaysia Food Promotion is a part of the Sales Mission to Moscow and Yekaterinburg led by Dato’ Seri Mohamed Nazri to boost Russian tourist arrivals to Malaysia. It is also in line with the celebration of Malaysia Year of Festivals 2015 and the country’s aim to boost its arrivals and receipts to 29.4 million and RM89 billion (USD20 billion) respectively this year.

Besides the Malaysia Food Promotion, Dato’ Seri Mohamed Nazri will be hosting a Gala Dinner tonight for members of the Russian travel trade fraternity and media. It is an opportunity to highlight Malaysia’s tourist attractions and give the guests an update of the country’s tourism developments, as well as its new and upcoming attractions.

The event will give Tourism Malaysia an opportunity to meet up with the trade and media here and learn about the tourism concerns and issues of this market, as well as to forge a closer relationship.

On 8 October, the Minister of Tourism and Culture will be leading a Malaysian delegation to participate in the EXPOTRAVEL Fair in Yekaterinburg, where Malaysia is the Partner Country of this two-day international tourist exhibition. The event is set to attract more than 10,000 attendees and will be participated by over 250 corporate participants from more than 100 countries and destinations.

In recent years, the number of Russian tourists visiting Malaysia has steadily increased, with an average annual growth of 16% for the last three years. In 2014, Malaysia received 61,845 Russian tourists, signifying an increase of 16.2% compared to 53,203 tourists in 2013.