DOT opens Cordillera' Mangan taku' food fair

By Carlito C. Dar

BAGUIO CITY - - Cordillera cuisines and indigenous food are being featured in this summer capital once again as the Dept. of Tourism Cordillera regional office and its partners brought back the “Mangan Taku” food fair last week.
    CAR regional director Jovita Ganongan bared this saying this was in  celebration of Filipino Food Month this April.
    Mangan Taku, a Kankana-ey word meaning “let us eat” was launched by DOT Cordillera, in partnership with the city government of Baguio and the Dept. of Agriculture, in April 2019 featuring indigenous cuisines and food products from the Cordillera provinces of Abra, Apayao, Benguet, Ifugao, Kalinga and Mountain Province.
    After taking a break in 2020 due to the Covid-19pandemic, the food festival is back this year taking into account the needed health and safety protocols of doing such activities under new normal.
    The food fair opened with the Mangan Taku Chef’s competition wherein from April 21-23, amateur cooks and chefs in the Cordillera focused on creative dishes that are delicious blend of local and indigenous food knowledge and modern cooking techniques. 
    The top five competitors shall then join the Mangan Taku Food Crawl on April 29 to May 2, wherein the chefs and featured restaurants will serve their winning food entry to invited guests.
    Scheduled on April 27 is the Mangan Taku Food Conversations where selected guests will talk about Cordillera local food delicacies, experiences and the importance of food in tourism destination branding. The event which will also feature videos of heritage dishes cooking demonstration will   be live streamed on facebook by DOT– CAR.
    Another feature of the Mangan Taku this year is the Cordillera Chef’s Fair - Take Out Edition set at the SM City Baguio on April 28 to May 2. In partnership with Cordillera Chef Organization, food booths will be set up for the public to have a taste of Cordillera cuisines and indigenous food products. 
    Ganongan said the Mangan Taku Food Fair aims to provide an avenue for   stakeholders in the food and restaurant industry who are  also directly hit by the pandemic to promote and sell their products while providing the general public the opportunity to learn and explore local Cordillera cuisine and appreciate the region’s food landscape, both onsite and virtually.
    “Along with the consideration of the importance of this event to sustain tourism development and branding of Baguio and the Cordilleras, we also assure Mangan Taku will be conducted under strict and safety guidelines and  will also be utilizing the most appropriate platform that adopts to the new normal,” Ganongan said.