DOT moves food and travel fest ‘Kain na!’ online
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Tourism cooked up the return of its food and travel festival, “Kain na!,” that will now be staged online amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
"The Filipinos' love for food never wavered nor waned, even during this pandemic, but it all the more fueled our appetite and cravings. And while mass gatherings and public events are still limited, we pivot our Kain Na! initiatives to the digital platform," Tourism Secretary Bernadette Romulo-Puyat said.
The culinary tourism event that had 12 successful legs since its first run in 2018 will be held from September 15 to 18 this year.
The DOT said the blended edition remains to be a venue to grow the public’s interest in food and farm tourism.
Activities line-up
For this four-day virtual celebration, eating, food demonstrations and other trademarks of the previous Kain Na! editions will be enjoyed by the public at the comfort of their homes.
This will feature food tourism exchanges, an online selling platform, digital business training and e-learning modules.
“Kain Na! is our continuing invitation to enjoy and appreciate Filipino food culture. As we reboot the economy we have called upon Filipinos to ‘buy Filipino,’” Puyat said.
“This time around, we urge you all to ‘eat and drink Filipino’, too! Do partake of our local cuisine, agricultural produce and food and beverage products. Every sip and every bite will help our farmers and food tourism stakeholders recover from this pandemic. This is certainly a fun way to lend our support," she added.
On September 15, the Kain Na! Trading Post, an online shop housing partner merchants, will be launched along with the Ayala Malls foodie pop-ups.
The food and travel event will highlight Philippine coffee, tea and chocolate partnered with webinar series and experiential sessions such as food demos and virtual tours by Malagos Chocolate, Auro Chocolates, The Chocolate Chamber, El Union Coffee, Henry & Sons, Bo’s Coffee, Gourmet Farms, Nurture Farmacy, Yamang Bukid, REFMAD Dragonfruit Farm, and the Oolong tea farmers of Gingoog City to showcase various destinations and products.
Food tourism destinations such as Bicol, Cebu, Cagayan de Oro, Pampanga, Laguna, Davao, Bacolod, Manila, Iloilo, and Baguio were featured in previous editions of "Kain na!"
Ayala Malls’ Pasyal TV will also unveil its Philippine coffee, tea and chocolate video produced in partnership with the DOT.
Meanwhile, award-winning chef Margarita Fores, chef JJ Yulo of Pinoy Eats World and Foodtrip, travel and food guide Ivan Man Dy of Old Manila Walks and Michell Cruz of Klook will headline the food tourism 101. They will present their experiences from food walks, market tours, bar crawls among others.
The food event’s online learning modules will also offer e-commerce trainings for food and farm tourism stakeholders and other MSMEs in partnership with the Department of Trade and Industry’s CTRL+BIZ Reboot Now program with the help of enablers Google, Facebook, Zomato, Eat In, Lalafood, GrabFood, Thames International Business School, PayMaya, GCash, QuadX PayLink, GrabPay, and Union Bank.
The succeeding legs of Kain Na! are slated in October where “Food Trips” will be on spotlight, followed by “Slow Food, Slow Travel” in November and “Christmas Cravings” in December.
Kain Na! was launched in 2018 to promote distinct regional Filipino cuisine, farm tourism, as well as tourism destinations. It then drew hundreds of international and domestic food enthusiasts.
Puyat then bolsters the country’s reputation as one of the world’s gastronomy hubs.
Last year, the food and travel fest showcased a food and farmer’s market where suppliers of iconic Filipino heritage cuisine and delicacies sold their wares along with local farms that sold a variety of fresh agricultural products. The event was staged in various food tourism destinations in the country.
Exhibitors of Kain na! usually include hotels and restaurants, farm resorts, agri industry groups, eco-farm adventure parks, transport operators and members of academe.
The local tourism offices are likewise joining the culinary event to present their specialty food products, coffee, vegetables, juices, handicrafts and culinary tour packages.
To spur the food tourism in the country, the DOT in August last year partnered with the country's top food chain, Jollibee, and launched its campaign "Eats More Fun in the Philippines." The campaign seeks to invite foodies and tourists alike to visit the country and have a taste of the unique Filipino cuisine.
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