“Reaping” Agri-Industrial Success in Pangasinan

by @SiRVis

 

A travel journal that will give you a pleasant view of people, places, food, culture, history and events from a refreshing perspective

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WHENEVER I travel around Pangasinan, I always check out each municipality’s OTOP especially the native delicacies and farm produce. One could see vendors sell their goods along the highway or at special kiosks near the town plaza. This is a testament of the growing agricultural industry – Pangasinan is among the top producers of quality rice and corn in the country! The province’s rice products are one of the best tasting and most sought after “pasalubong.”

To showcase the new technologies and farming system in Pangasinan, an agri-industrial exhibit and trade fair Umaani Expo 2017 was held from March 28-April 1, 2017 at the Provincial Agriculture Center in Tebag, Sta. Barbara. Governor Amado Espino III conceptualized the expo together with the provincial government to expand and strengthen existing markets for farm crops and fish commodities in conjunction with the national government’s food security plan.

I went to the Day 2 of the Umaani Expo which is dubbed as “Agew na Umaaniy Pagey” or day of rice farmers. It featured the rice technology forum, farm mechanization field demonstration, sanka-samitan rice product contest and the fellowship night for rice stakeholders and partner organizations. What interested me was the Sangka-Samitan (most delicious) Rice Product Contest. I could not pass up the opportunity to taste Pangasinan’s delicious “kakanin” as well as a lunch side trip to a popular bulaluhan and kambingan resto nearby.

Entering the venue, I was greeted with a free taste of kundandit. It is a rough and dry corn bran mixed with small amounts of cassava, banana and sticky rice. The homemade delicacy comes from Manaoag. Contestants/ towns set-up their best rice cakes and products like nilatikan, suman, binuburan and the famous tupig. Nilatikan is glutinous rice cake with caramelized toppings and sauce made of coconut cream and panucha or molasses cake. Suman is also made of ansak-ket or glutinous rice. It is cooked in coconut milk and often wrapped in banana or coconut leaves. Another variant of suman is the patopat or inkaldit. It is similar to the Tagalog’s biko but the partially cooked rice is put inside onós (young coconut leaves stripped of its thin backbone or tingting) woven into fat rectangles, and then steamed. Binuburan is fermented rice. It is actually the first stage in the process of making tapuy, the Northern Luzon wine made from rice. Tupig or intemtem is made from a mixture of rice flour, coconut juice, coconut meat and white sugar wrapped in banana leaves then grilled in hot charcoal.

Which Pangasinan town has the sangka-samitan/ best tasting nilatikan, suman, binuburan and tupig? Whichever town wins; it highlights the fact that Pangasinan has reaped “sweet” success in the agri-industrial field. Feel free to send comments and connect with us on www.facebook.com/thenorthvista

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