ONE of the stalls from the DTI Food Festival 2025 at SM Megamall’s Megatrade Halls 1–3. The event showcases over 250 regional delicacies nationwide, a vibrant celebration of Filipino culinary heritage, creativity, and entrepreneurship.

WHILE the DTI (Department of Trade and Industry) Food Festival may have ended its May 30 to June 1 run last week at SM Megamall, its impacts will be long-felt. While the DTI gave their booths for free to 250 micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), the department also launched the Malikhaing Pinoy website, which aims to connect members of the creative industries to their potential customers faster.

The fair attracted participation from the National Capital Region, Western Visayas (particularly Iloilo City), and other regions such as Cagayan Valley, Central Luzon, and Calabarzon (Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Rizal, and Quezon).

On May 30, at the opening ceremonies at the Megatrade Hall of SM Megamall, DTI Secretary Cristina Aldeguer-Roque said, “This festival highlights the vast potential of our regional flavors and showcases the ingenuity of our local entrepreneurs. It is a powerful testament to how food can be both a cultural expression and economic opportunity. We must support the products of the Philippines. Let’s all have an aggressive approach in really buying Filipino.”

And aggressive we were: we scored tisanes and herbal brews from Brayden’s Food Products (braydensfoodproduct21@gmail.com), featuring herbal teas like turmeric, ginger, and mangosteen from Nueva Vizcaya. We also found novel hot sauce flavors from Dimebag 13 through their brand Pepper ng Ina Mo (instagram.com/PepperNgInaMo), and conveniently bottled and foil-packed tuyo (dried fish, but theirs were preserved in oil) from Pio’s Gourmet Tuyo (instagram.com/piosgourmettuyo). Finally, we found a sugarcane juice stand (open for franchising opportunities) from Unas Naimas (facebook.com/unasnaimasph).

“Our trade shows have already more than doubled, and our sales have really gone up, by 49%,” the trade secretary said in a speech.

WEBSITE
Meanwhile, Ms. Aldeguer-Roque also launched the DTI Malikhaing Pinoy website (malikhaingpinoy.ph). “President Ferdinand R. Marcos’ mandate is to strengthen the creative industry at all costs, both locally and globally.”

The website aims to connect creatives to customers through a networking directory but also create a space for learning and business through e-commerce and master classes. “Over 900 creatives are already on this platform, and we look forward to welcoming more,” she said.

Nylah Bautista, supervising head of the competitiveness and innovation group of the DTI said in an interview that the website currently supports creatives in publishing, music, performing arts, and cultural expressions (among other industries). “Anyone who needs a graphic artist, a designer; they can access that,” said Ms. Bautista. Soon, they will also develop an app.

“The creative industry is booming. That’s the industry that’s contributing about 8% of our GDP (gross domestic product),” she said. — JL Garcia

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