Filipino products see brisk sales in ASEAN media hub on 1st day of showcase—DOT

MANILA — Philippine snacks and accessories is fast becoming a hit among delegates of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit who arrived early in Manila, as the Department of Tourism reports that P500,000 worth of products have already been sold in the ASEAN International Media Center souvenir shop.

Among the best sellers so far in the ASEAN micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) hub in the ASEAN International Media Center are coffee, pili nuts and pearl accessories, Tourism Secretary Dita Angara Mathay told reporters.

“Brazil and people from Europe, somebody bought a lot of pili products because mahal daw ang pili doon… Pearls are [also] a lot cheaper here,” the Tourism chief said.

“Right now, on it’s first day, I was told half a million pesos sold. These are by the delegates alone,” she said.

“We expect more kasi when you have such a good time, when you are a traveller, you are a delegate or are working or having a vacation, you wanna bring a souvenir more, so we are quite confident with our sales for MSME,” she said.

The DOT teamed up with the Department of Trade and Industry to curate Philippine products that will be sold in the World Trade Center, where local and international media will converge in the next few days to cover the 49th ASEAN and Related Summits here, Angara Mathay said.

Other products sold in the MSME hub include locally-produced chips, alcoholic beverages, toiletries, kitchenware, barong and other textile products.

Meanwhile, delicacies from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao are served for free for delegates in the DOT’s gastronomy area, she said.

“The President wants to make sure that you know Filipinos, when you welcome a visitor to your home, your friends and your family, lagi mayroong pagkain. That’s part of our nature, so we wanna make sure that we extend the same kind of Philippine brand of hospitality to our guests,” she said.=

“That’s why we do not make them pay. It should be free-flowing food and a discovery in itself,” she said.

The Philippine government has allocated P22.9 billion for the hosting of the ASEAN Summit this year.

The DOT has yet to give the price tag for mounting its gastronomy hub. Angara Mathay said that several award-winning Filipino chefs curated the menu from Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. The menu in the gastronomy hub in the International Media Center also changes each day to feature new delicacies.

“We didn’t want to leave any regional cuisine. We want to make sure that everyone is included… The main point there is people will see how diverse our culinary tradition is,” she said.

“That’s our advantage over other cuisines in the region because we have regional different kinds of features and characteristics, so that’s what we want to highlight,” she said.

The government is investing in the promotion of food tourism as gastronomy “generates long-staying and high-paying visitors,” the DOT Secretary said.

“If we’re not doing as well in the number of arrivals, warm bodies, we should do well in terms of revenue generated from the visit,” she said.

“People are looking for experiential tourism and culinary travel is very important. Why do we go to Japan? It’s not just for the centuries-old tradition, but it’s also because you’re going for a food trip,” she said.

“We also want that to happen for the Philippines, and we’re getting there.”