Philippine Consulate to Celebrate Filipino Food Movement in Hawaii via Virtual Summit

by Jim Bea Sampaga

Filipino food and cuisine are a big part of Hawaii’s local and immigrant culture. Filipino and Filipino Americans in the islands strengthen the presence of Filipino representation in the industry as they become chefs, restaurant owners, farmers and such. However, with the impact of the pandemic, our local food creatives are in need of support to stay afloat. In partnership with San Francisco-based nonprofit Filipino Food Movement (FFM), the Philippine Consulate General in Honolulu will host an online event called “Savor Filipino Summit-Hawaii” on Feb. 8, 2021 from 1pm to 4pm. Participants can register for free at filipinofoodmovement.org.The virtual summit event aims to (re)claim the Filipino identity through its cuisine, share knowledge in marketing and branding of Filipino food and survive amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We hope that through this event, we can spark enthusiasm to re-imagine and re-shape the future of Filipino cuisine,” said FFM in its event description.

There will be four sessions in the summit that explores the four sides of Filipino cuisine in the industry: Identity, Branding, Media and Business.

The line-up of event speakers come from different backgrounds in the industry including Filipino culture academics, restaurant owners, social media food influencers, and Filipino lifestyle journalists to name a few.

Below are the online event’s line-up and its speakers:

Identity: A dive into the past and exploration of the future of Filipino cuisine in Hawai’i — Dr. Pia Arboleda (Executive Director of University of Hawaii at Manoa’s Center of Philippines Studies) and Sam Choy (Chef and co-founder of Hawaii Regional Cuisine)Branding: Breaking the stereotypes of design & popularizing Filipino food around the globe — Alexandra Dorda (founder of Kasama Rum), Cheryl Tiu (lifestyle journalist and founder of Cross Cultures) and Patrice Cleary (chef and owner of Purple Patch restaurant)

Media: How can we get more representation in food media? — Alexandra Cuerdo (director and producer of “Ulam: Main Dish” documentary), Eric Baranda (Frolic Hawaii contributor) and Queenie Laforga (local food social media influencer)Business: Starting and sustaining food businesses through a pandemic — Peter Oshiro (Hawaii Department of Health), Eric Elnar (Philippine Trade Commissioner) and Joel Navasca (chef and owner of Tiano’s Restaurant)The “Savor Filipino Summit-Hawaii” will also have a virtual tiangge where participants can learn more about Filipino products and content from event sponsors and partner organizations. Participants will also have a chance to network with fellow participants at the end of the online event.

“We hope that the Summit will spark more conversations and generate stronger collaborations among FilAm stakeholders to carve a place for Filipino cuisine in Hawai’i and the global culinary mainstream,” Consul General Joselito Jimeno of the Philippine Consulate General in Honolulu.

Visit filipinofoodmovement.org to register. Registration is free for all participants.

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