Filipino heritage and cuisine took front and center as the Department of Tourism (DOT) last week held the “Salo-Salo: Taste the Flavor, Experience the Culture” to launch the Strategic Framework and Roadmap for Food and Gastronomy Tourism, and Market Tourism as a new tourism sub-product in the Philippines.
The twin launch, led by Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco, brought together national and local government officials, tourism industry leaders, culinary experts, and advocates for cultural preservation.
The programs are part of the DOT’s strategic thrust to position the Philippines as a must-visit culinary tourism destination while uplifting community-based tourism through the revitalization of public markets as cultural hubs.
“Today, the Department of Tourism affirms that truth with action. We launched the Food and Gastronomy Tourism Roadmap and Market Tourism Product Development Program, not as slogans but as strategies—designed to deliver work, build pride, and position Filipino culinary culture where it belongs, at the center of national and regional development in the eyes of the world,” Frasco said in her keynote address at the Food Wanderer x Lakbay Museo in Ayala Malls Manila Bay.
The Strategic Framework and Roadmap for Food and Gastronomy Tourism is designed to position Filipino cuisine at the heart of Philippine tourism.
It aims to guide public and private stakeholders in developing food and gastronomy tourism, foster deeper appreciation of Filipino gastronomy both locally and globally, support storytelling that reflects the cultural diversity of Filipino communities, and contribute to a distinctive and sustainable tourism identity for the Philippines.
Alongside this, the DOT officially launched Market Tourism as a new sub-product of Food and Gastronomy Tourism. The program is designed to equip local government units, tourism officers, and stakeholders with tools to reimagine traditional public markets as cultural tourism destinations.
Central to this effort are product development modules, authored by a multidisciplinary team of tourism professionals, cultural workers, and culinary advocates.
Through these modules and accompanying capacity-building sessions, the program aims to sustainably transform select public markets into vibrant community-based tourism hubs that celebrate Filipino identity, tradition, and enterprise.
Following the official launch, guests were treated to a multisensory walkthrough of Food Wanderer x Lakbay Museo. Along with the interactive food stations module writers introduced the modules under the Market Tourism Program, allowing the guests to know more about the program, the market as an asset, its contribution to culture, and its possible integration to tourism.
Later in the day, Secretary Frasco led stakeholders through a culinary tour of the City of Malabon, where Mayor Jeannie Sandoval and local officials welcomed the group.
Meanwhile, the DOT also treated another group of stakeholders to a Binondo Food Wok, an immersive culinary and cultural tour through the world’s oldest Chinatown.
“This is a historic moment. For the first time, the gastronomy has been formally incorporated in the National Tourism Development Plan, not as an afterthought, but as a central pillar of our tourism strategy,” Frasco said.
