Terra Madre Asia & Pacific 2025: Slow Food’s biggest food festival is coming to Bacolod

“This is a turning point not just for Slow Food in the Philippines, but for the entire region,” says Ramon “Chin Chin” Uy Jr., Slow Food councillor for Southeast Asia. Based in Bacolod, Uy is an organic farmer, restaurateur, social entrepreneur and staunch advocate of the Slow Food movement. “Terra Madre Asia & Pacific is a space where grassroots wisdom can shape policy, tradition can spark innovation, and the lived experiences of communities take their rightful place in shaping our global food future.”

The City of Smiles is a natural choice for the historic event, having hosted Terra Madre Visayas in 2023 and 2024. Terra Madre Asia & Pacific strengthens the destination’s significance in the Slow Food network, marking the official designation of Bacolod City as the Slow Food Hub in Asia and Center for Sustainable Gastronomy, and consequently, Negros Occidental as the Organic Capital of the Philippines.

Read more: Meet Ramon “Chinchin” Uy, Jr: the man behind Slow Food Negros

Terra Madre Asia & Pacific was launched on September 9 at the North Forbes Pavilion, Makati City, with key members of the Slow Food community and Christina Frasco, Secretary of the Department of Tourism. Here, they introduced their central aims: to turn the world’s attention to the Philippines, highlighting our food biodiversity, gastronomy and cultural heritage; to strengthen collaboration between chefs, youth groups, food producers, and Indigenous peoples, at a local and regional level; and to educate people about the importance of good, clean and fair food for all.

Even before the program began, guests were given a taste of what’s in store at the inaugural Terra Madre Asia & Pacific. Chefs, who are set to participate in the festival welcomed guests with delicious bites highlighting Ark of Taste ingredients, Slow Food’s global catalogue of endangered heritage ingredients.

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Hapag and Ayà’s chefs Kevin Navoa and Thirdy Dolatre prepared a kadyos miso piaya with prawn salad, while chef David Amoros offered a savoury spin on his famous El Born cheesecake using Negros cheese, wild honey, asin tibuok and sundried tomato jam. Offbeat Bistro’s chef Angelo Comsti topped his burnt coconut broas with Negros blue crab and egg salad, while chef Tina Legarda of Kumba and Bamba Bistro whipped up mini pan de sal sandwiches filled with pili-brased pork belly, grilled eggplant crema, annatto-coffee sarsa, pineapple mostarda and pickled onions.

The Lechon Diva herself, Dedet dela Fuente, joined the fun with her own mini sandwiches stuffed with her signature lechon infused with garlic, sampaloc leaves, rosemary, panocha and asin tultul, plus tangy batwan jelly to go with it. Meanwhile, Your Local’s chef Pat Go prepared muscovado beef pares osso bucco served on molo crisps, and chef Charles Montañez of Mamacita served up tanigue with tomato and salted egg salad, cured bihod, and 12-month-old marang miso on thin tortilla wafers.

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Representing Slow Drinks were mixologists Ken Alonso (Proudly Promdi), Kalel Demetrio (Agimat at Ugat Foraging Bar & Kitchen, Alab Distillery) and Arkadius Ryback (soon-to-open Toma Toma), shaking things up with their own renditions of Filipino cocktails. Alonso’s tapuey pomelo spritz was an easygoing favourite, made with Pedronan tapuey (traditional Filipino rice wine), pomelo-infused Aperol, pineapple soda and toasted rice tincture, while Demetrio’s Terra Madre Sour with marang, lambanog, santol, calamansi liqueur, asin tultul and calamansi tempted more adventurous drinkers. The most potent and intriguing of the three was Ryback’s green mango and coconut daiquiri, where the Bonifacio white rum made a lasting impression on both me and the bartender himself—though made from molasses, it had a distinct finish reminiscent of rhum agricole, a French Caribbean style of rum made from sugarcane juice.

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Drinks in hand, we settled into our seats to hear more about the cause that’s brought us all together. “In 2022, the Philippines, through our Secretary Christina Frasco and the Department of Tourism, proudly presented a booth at Terra Madre in Turin, Italy, managed by Slow Food Negros and led by our president, Reena Gamboa,” Uy recounted, acknowledging two key women who were in the audience with us that evening. “The enthusiasm for Filipino food inspired us to imagine hosting something similar in Bacolod,” he continued. 

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Paolo di Croce, the director general of Slow Food International, echoed Uy’s vigour. “Our goal is to think about the future of food, the future of the planet,” explained di Croce. “You cannot think about the future of the planet without thinking about Asia. There is an unbelievable richness, an unbelievable diversity, that we don’t have to lose, that we don’t have to risk. We—you—have to be proud of the diversity that you have in this continent, in the Philippines.”

As they unveiled the preliminary lineup of chefs and mixologists, guests were treated to a four-course meal by Margarita Signature Caterer. From a hearty tomato-based seafood stew with lapu-lapu, ulang and scallop to a fork-tender Angus short rib with a Davao chocolate jus and tinigib “polenta”, each dish was rooted in deep reverence for local ingredients, a cause that the late chef Margarita Forés championed through every plate.

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In addition to the aforementioned chefs and mixologists featured at the launch, Terra Madre Asia & Pacific 2025 will welcome local chefs such as Jordy Navarra (Toyo Eatery), Chele González (Gallery by Chele) and Yuichi Ito (Crosta), plus bartenders Niko Tiutan (Ito), Ron Cruz (Fat Cat) and Jessey Qi (Last Chance). Flying in just for the occasion are Filipino talents Johanne Siy (formerly Lola, Singapore), Ross Magnaye (Serai, Melbourne), Ardika Dwitama Tjandra (August, Jakarta), Danny Park (Zest, Seoul) and Agung Prabowo (The Old Man and Penicillin, Hong Kong), among many others.

These F&B delegates will join forces with farmers, fisherfolk, artisans, indigenous leaders, youth activists, coffee experts and policy-makers across a range of activities over the five-day programme. At the House of Slow Food, guests can learn more about the movement and its many projects across the globe. The Foodways Exhibition will showcase the importance of rice in Southeast Asia, spices in South Asia, soy in East Asia and taro in Australia and the Pacific, with emphasis on their roles in cultural identity and biodiversity. Public talks and conferences will tackle increasingly relevant issues such as climate resilience and food justice, while the Terra Madre kitchen and taste workshops will host guided tastings, collaborations and cooking demonstrations. At the Community Kitchen, representatives from all 61 barangays of Bacolod will cook and share traditional dishes in a display of local heritage, and the Slow Drinks, Market, and Street Food section of the festival will highlight Ark of Taste ingredients.

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“The Slow Food movement [has a] collective aspiration for the Philippines to introduce our flavours to the world and to make a mark, knowing that this can and will help our communities and expand opportunities for our fellow Filipinos,” shared Secretary Frasco. “For me, the lesson in all these milestones is simple: when communities, government and the private sector come together, real change happens,” Uy added. “Slow Food Negros has become a template for collaboration, showing how we can create tangible results for farmers, fisherfolk, artisans and food communities.”

“On November 19 to 23, 2025, Bacolod City, Negros Occidental, the Philippines, will welcome the world. This will not just be an event, but a living testament to what we can achieve together. A gathering from soil to sea, where local tastes and traditions meet global conversations. Together, let us make Terra Madre Asia & Pacific a proud celebration of Negros, of the Philippines, of Asia and the Pacific—and of all the values of good, clean and fair food for all.”

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Terra Madre Asia & Pacific 2025 is made possible through collaboration between Slow Food, the City Government of Bacolod led by Mayor Greg Gasataya, the Provincial Government of Negros Occidental led by Governor Eugenio Lacson, the Department of Tourism led by Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco, the Department of Agriculture led by Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr., the Department of Trade and Industry led by Secretary Cristina Roque, TESDA Director General Kiko Benitez, Congressman Albee Benitez, Congressman Javi Benitez, and Senator Loren Legarda. For updates, follow Terra Madre Asia & Pacific on Instagram at @terramadreasiapacific.