ASINGAN, Pangasinan – Visitors and residents here shared more than 700 trays of kankanen (native rice cakes) during Saturday's celebration of the Kankanen Festival.

TRAYS of native snacks at the Kankanen Festival in Tayug, Pangasinan. (Radyo Pilipinas FB)

Mayor Calos Lopez Jr. said the town's 21 barangays, including 27 schools and 10 civic society organizations, joined hands to produce the needed native rice cakes for the event.

In less than 30 minutes, the more than 700 trays or bilao of kankanen was consumed, he said.

"Everybody's excited to taste the different kankanen. This year, aside from biko ('inkalti' in Ilocano), there are also suman, palitaw, tupig, latik, puto, bitso-bitso, and others," he said.

"The other residents requested to include tupig since three barangays here are producing and selling tupig. These are Barangays Dupoc, Baro, at Domampot," the mayor added.

Last year, the town showcased over 500 trays of kankanen during the festival.

Lopez said the festival is not only a thanksgiving activity for the industry that has provided livelihood for many families in Asingan but also a highlight that aside from corn, rice, carabao's milk, and other farm produce, the municipality also has small businesses cooking and selling kankanen.

The main ingredients of kankanen are sticky rice (malagkit), sugar, and gata or fresh milk.

"Nagbigay ang munisipyo ng tig-dalawang litro ng fresh carabao's milk to each participant. Ibang-iba ang sarap ng kankanen ni iniluto sa gatas ng kalabaw (The municipal government gave the participants two liters of fresh carabao's milk each. Its taste is different when fresh carabao's milk is used), " Lopez said.

The fresh milk was sourced from the Bantog Samahang Nayon Cooperative, he added.

To date, Lopez said, there are about 384 milking carabaos here, including young ones, that could produce milk in two years' time.

To further help kankanen producers, Lopez said a part of their public market was converted into a kankanen and bakery section.

He said this is also to ensure that there is a designated area for tourists and visitors looking for the delicacy.

The Department of Education started Kankanen Festival in 2011 by the Department of Education and was adopted by the local government unit as the town’s very own festivity in 2019, according to the municipal government.  Its celebration was halted in 2020 amid the Covid-19 pandemic and resumed in 2022.

Aside from the Kankanen Festival, the town is also set to hold a Carabao Festival on April 30, with activities including a parade of carabaos in dresses, a demonstration of the various ways to cook carabao meat or carabeef, and a showcase of carabao milk byproducts.

Activities are organized and funded by the Bantog Samahang Nayon Cooperative with assistance from the local government. (PNA)