THE Provincial Government of Negros Occidental is banking on its food sector to further strengthen the province’s tourism industry by inviting more tourists to come and taste local delicacies this year.
Cristine Mansinares, provincial supervising tourism operations officer, said food remains to be one of the strong tourism offerings of the province which has been attracting a lot of tourists, both local and foreign.
She said there are restaurants in Negros Occidental which have not expanded outside the province thus tourists from other provinces and countries must really have to taste the dishes here.
“It is really a come-on for tourists especially now that there are direct connections from different key destinations around the country,” Mansinares said, adding that “some guests come here mainly to eat making tourism spots as secondary attraction.”
One of the initiatives of the Provincial Government is incorporating food with various activities even under other sectors like agriculture.
During the annual Organic Festival, the province involved schools and universities with culinary or hospitality management courses or programs through cooking competition using a list of products sourced from Negros Occidental.
Mansinares said they are also continuing the conduct of cooking demonstrations and competitions every Panaad sa Negros Festival where Negrense creativity in using local ingredients and produce is highlighted.
She said the annual Negros Trade Fair, especially through the newly-launched Negros First Food, is also one platform to promote the local culinary sector. For this year, the event will again underscore the province’s food industry.
Also, the Negros Occidental Tourism Division is coming up with Negros Food Guide this year.
Mansinares said it is a list of must-eat food in Negros especially for first-time tourists. It will feature main dishes with section for organic restaurants that use local produce like cheese and wine, among others.
One section will include stories on the food which should not be missed cooked by Negrense chefs when they are in the province, she added.
“In this food guide, we have a map for Bacolod City so tourists can do their tour on their own like a walking tour along Lacson Tourism Strip where they can also dine,” Mansinares said.
She added that the promotional tool which is up for printing this year will also be available online.
Tourism personnel of the province also met with the private sector for an effort to prepare a Negros culinary book, which will also feature local chefs, menus and recipes.
It will feature food and ingredients that are seemingly “vanishing” now as well as popular dishes like “kansi” and “kadyos-baboy-langka” or popularly known as KBL.
“Our private sector partners already have the layout, they are planning to also release it this year,” Mansinares added.
