Activities

The event will be implemented through the concerted efforts of the private sector, government organizations, agricultural sector, tribal groups and other concerned sectors. 

 An executive committee will be created which shall manage and oversee the festival.  Committees will be organized identifying their respective roles and functions. Highlighting ethnic foods, the seven-day festival will take place at the Benguet State University campus with corresponding entrance fee for maintenance of the area.

 Components of the festival will be cookfest, lectures, cultural presentations, trade fair and exhibit, local concerts, and ethnic games which shall run for the whole duration.  The exhibit shall also include installation of native huts of the different tribes/ethnoliguistic groups.

 During the event, each province together with their tribal/ethnolinguistic groups will be given a day to showcase their culture on ethnic food preparations and cultural presentations.

 For those who would like to avail of a wholesome treat, a selection of visitor’s package will be offered.

 The activities will be documented.  For the cookfest, the food preparations of the different menus incorporating cultural significance will be compiled.

FoodFest Components

1.      Cookfest

Objective: To showcase the unique ethnic and exotic foods in the region

Description/Mechanics

This component will showcase the different ethnic and exotic foods in the region. Restaurant owners will be invited to serve native foods with corresponding fees.

A food demonstration of the various menus for every province together with their tribes shall also take place.

Foods to be showcased will be whole menus (i.e canao menu, kini-ing etc. ), exotic foods such as babate, babadi,Ginga, kiwet (fresh water eel), rice cakes, ethnic beverages such as sabeng, ethnic vinegar like “tengba”, wines of different tribes, and vegetarian menu.

2.      Lectures series/Forum

Objectives:

a) Ethnic foods

·         To create awareness, knowledge and understanding of ethnic food production, processing, preparation, and serving encompassing the customs and traditions of different tribes

·         To promote sustainability of the region's resources

b) Native instruments

·         To have knowledge and develop skills in playing the different native instruments

c) Native dances

·         To have knowledge and develop skills in performing native dances

Description/Mechanics

Lectures and forums will be presented with interactive discussions, workshops and demonstrations. Lectures on ethnic foods will be deal on both plants and animals, for animals may be domestic or wild while plants from forest or grown. There will also be lectures agricultural systems of the different tribes and sustainability of resources.

Other lectures include the different native instruments and their uses together with demonstrations on how to play the instruments and native dances and their fitting occasions coupled with demonstrations.

This will also provide the public an overview of the Cordillera region, its people and their heritage. Reliable speakers will be tapped for this component.

3.      Cultural presentations

Objective: To entertain and educate the people on the relevance of cultural presentations on the life of the Cordillera people that will revolve around food gatherings, preparations and festivities

Description/Mechanics

The different provinces together with their tribal groups will perform dances, songs, story telling, chants

4.      Local artist concerts

Objective: To entertain the public on traditional and contemporary native songs among local artists.

Description/Mechanics

This component is necessary to attract more crowd in the activity area. Local singers from the Cordillera will be tapped to perform in this activity but new singers will also be encouraged to participate to discover new talents. It is encouraged that native songs will be performed to promote local singers as well as local composers.

5.      Trade fair and exhibit

Objective: To showcase and promote ethnic and locally produced products

Description/Mechanics

Local farmers and entrepreneurs will be invited to the trade fair and exhibit. A registration fee of P1,000.00 will be collected from exhibitors to subsidize cost to be incurred for the activity. With the fee, an exhibitors will be entitled to a selling booth, a chair, electricity and security during the night. Exhibitors will be coming from the different provinces of the region. Products will focus on ethnic/organically produced (fresh or processed), ornamental plants, woodcrafts, woven items, and other handicraft items.

An exhibit area will also be set up to display artifacts, utensils representing culture and traditions of the Cordillerans. This will include items, publications, photos and other documentary references referring to cultural heritage. Native huts will also be installed that will show the kitchen, eating area, food storage, and replica of native food.

To give highlights to the exhibit, special awards will be given to oldest artifacts, best documentary article, and oldest photo of significance.

Proposed layout and arrangement/cluster for the photo exhibit will be as follows:

1.      Ethnic food

2.      Vegetarian section

3.      Coffee, wine and tea beverage section

4.      Artifacts, utensils, jars, kayabang, etc.

5.      Cultural documentary section (photos,video,literatures,publications)

6. Visitor’s Package

Objective: To promote the cultural and market potential of the region

Description/Mechanics

The visitor’s package will have a choice of circuits to visit and will incorporate food, accommodations, farm visit, opportunity to be dressed up in native clothes and a chance to perform native dances and given tokens during the event. Fees will be charged to cover the expenses to be incurred during the visit.

7. Indigenous Games

Objectives:

a) To educate the public on indigenous games

b) To develop camaraderie among participants

Description/Mechanics

Ethnic games will be open to the public. Several games will be spread out for the period to draw crowd. Corresponding prizes will be given to winners.

Proponents

In the conduct of the activity, the New Benguet Provincial Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Benguet Provincial Tourism Council will be the lead facilitators for the private sector co-organizers; the Benguet State University and the Benguet Provincial Government through the Benguet Tourism Office will be the lead facilitators for the government sector co-organizers; the Benguet Press Corps and the PIA-Benguet will be the lead co-organizers for the media group and the Cordillera Organic Producers Association and the Cordillera Organic Agri-Development Council will be the lead co-organizers for the practitioners group.