25 top chefs joining 6th Negros Organic Farmers Festival

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines — Seventeen Manila-based top chefs and restaurateurs and eight others from Negros Occidental will be joining the 6th Negros Island Organic Farmers Festival from December 16 to 20 at the Capitol grounds, as part of their advocacy for organic farming in the country.

These top chefs and restaurateurs will be featured in a CookFest at the Organic Restaurant. For five days they will take turns in demonstrating to the public how they prepare their own signature dishes using organic and local ingredients.

Junior Master Chef hosts Chef Fernando Aracama of Republiq and Chef JP Anglo of Mushu--- both Negrenses-will kick off the CookFest, which has become a regular activity of the annual festival.

Joining them are Ilonggo native Chef J. Gamboa of El Cirkulo Restaurant, Chef Ariel Manuel of Lolo Dad's, Negrense Chef Margarita Fores of CIBO, Chef Sau Del Rosario of Le Bistro Vert and Chef Ian McKenzie of the Philippine Airlines.

Organizers are encouraging the public, especially cooks, mothers and students, to see the event in order to learn and experience the best organic and local cuisines prepared by the country's best chefs.

"It's hard to gather these people in one event. This is probably the largest gathering of well-known chefs interacting with local organic farmers," said Ramon "Chin-chin" Uy Jr., president of Organik na Negros! Organic Producers and Retailers Association.

"This year's Organic Festival will be bigger because of the participation of different sectors. The festival is a rare gathering of our Manila-based top chefs who are set to build a partnership with our local organic farmers in Negros," Uy said.

Meanwhile, Aracama, Anglo, Gamboa, and Manuel are scheduled to hold a one-day tour of several organic farms in Negros before the festival. They requested the organizers to conduct a market matching between the chefs and restaurateurs and local organic farmers and fisherfolk, to be facilitated by the DTI.

The chefs said they are looking at Negros Island as a major source of organic products because they cannot find them by bulk or with consistent supply in Luzon for their respective restaurants in Manila.

Uy said the organic food industry in Negros is more established because of the strong private-public partnership, as highlighted by the annual organic festival. "We have brought organic food to the mainstream. Buying organic directly also means better prices for our local farmers. The result is a dramatic increase in agri-tourism in the last several years," he added. - THE FREEMAN