Who among you loves food? Of course, we all do!
In the spirit of taking pride and embracing what is uniquely Filipino, Mahalin Pagkaing Atin, a very apt advocacy campaign talks about everyone’s favorite topic—FOOD! Though not as popular as some of the dishes from our neighborhood countries, Filipino food is something we can be proud of for its diverse choices and delectable flavours.
This advocacy is being supported by groups like Aboitiz food subsidiary and Pilmico. Aboitiz food subsidiary helps in boosting livestock while Pilmico encourages farmers to embrace backyard farming as a sustainable form of living for locals. They have distributed piglets and egg machines to different provinces and selected beneficiaries. Pilmico also holds Food and Livelihood Expo to agricultural areas where livestock and poultry are prevalent and of great importance.
On July 31, 2015, Mahalin Pagkaing Atin, together with Mercato Centrale Group, will be further promoting authentic Filipino food choices through an event dubbed as Panlasang Norte. It will be a night-long festivities filled with fun activities and delightful food finds.
I've been to some provinces in the North and food trip is one of the best experiences I've had there. Can't wait to have a taste of my favorite bagnet, Ilocos empanada, pinakbet and dinakdakan. Oh, and Pakbet Pizza too!
What food are you looking forward to see in the event?
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It was indeed a night of fun and good food!
The guests were serenaded by a band as we wait for the program proper to start and munch into our favorite food from Northern Luzon that we got from Mercato Centrale. And yeah, I got some of my favorites like Bagnet, Longganisa, Sisig, and Ilocos Empanada. And since I still got enough budget, I also had a dozen of Vigan Longganisa for takeout. Sorry I didn't get to take pictures of it. I was just too hungry and excited to dig in!haha
Mr. John Paul Pangilinan, Marketing Manager of Pilmico, opened the program with a welcome message. He explained to everyone Pilmico's advocacy campaign, Mahalin Pagkaing Atin, and what it has already achieved as of date. Just so you know, Mahalin Pagkaing Atin focuses on helping, teaching, and encouraging farmers to embrace backyard farming as a sustainable form of livelihood for locals. To date, Pilmico has already donated 191 egg machines, 646 piglets, and 14 agriposts to 304 families nationwide through this program.
"Each and every agricultural produce raised by the backyard farmers build the localities of the regions. They deserve to be celebrated." - John Paul Pangilinan, Marketing Manager, Pilmico Feeds
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| Mr. John Paul Pangilinan, Marketing Manager of Pilmico |
RJ Ledesma, co-founder of Mercato Centrale, also welcomed all the guests and shared to everyone how they started the business. Together with his partner, Anton Diaz, they have travelled across different countries and the first place they were brought to is the country's food market. That time, we don't have such place yet in the Philippines that's why they came up with Mercato Centrale and they have envisioned it as the go-to place where people can enjoy Filipino food.
"When we go to other countries like Singapore or Thailand, the first place locals take you to is the food strips. That's why we created Mercato -- so people will have somewhere to go to for local food. We want to support Filipino food - it's the next big thing in the world." - RJ Ledesma
And for the main event...
Chef Boy Logro, MPA's brand ambassador and Idol sa Kusina, did a cooking demo and shared some great tips about cooking. He made 4 dishes that night: Chicken Roulade, Pinakbet with Bagnet, Mango Empanada, and Creme Brulee. Of all the dishes, I loved Pinakbet with Bagnet the most. Pinakbet and Bagnet are two of my favorite dishes. Combine it into one dish? It's heaven!
We were also honored to knowing Chef Boy Logro better. He shared to everyone how he started his career and how he became who he is now. Did you know he's just an elementary graduate and yet, he was able to share his talent in cooking to some of the prominent personalities in the world including Princess Diana and Queen Elizabeth? Oh yeah! I was really inspired by his story. His passion, dedication, and great sense of humor paved his way to where he is right now.
So, that's basically what happened the whole night. Thanks to the people behind Mahalin Pagkaing Atin for bringing us such event. I am so looking forward to more of this!
