The House of Representatives has approved on second reading House Bill 10634, seeking to declare Pampanga as the “Culinary Capital of the Philippines.”
The bill’s authors, Senior Deputy Speaker Aurelio Gonzales Jr., fellow Kapampangans, Reps. Anna York Bondoc, Carmelo Lazatin II, and former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, among others, welcomed the measure’s imminent enactment.
Arroyo said that recognizing the rich culinary heritage of Pampanga will open doors for increased tourism, leading to more job opportunities and economic growth in their local communities.
“Pampanga as a culinary capital will boost the country’s culinary tourism industry, which in turn will provide livelihood to many Kapampangans,” Arroyo said.
House Committee on Tourism Chairperson and Romblon Rep. Eleandro Jesus Madrona likewise supported the bill.
“While Pampanga’s culinary history stretches back as far as a century, its embodiment of the rich culinary culture worthy of global recognition and even emulation remains undisputed until today,” Madrona said.
The bill’s authors noted Pampanga is the first Spanish province in Luzon. La Pampanga was the name given to it by the Spaniards when they first encounter locals along the banks or “pampang” of the Pampanga River.
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