Filipinos online were quick to criticize the Department of Trade and Industry’s (DTI) proposal to “standardize” local cuisines such as adobo, sinigang, sisig, and lechon. 

In a statement on Friday, July 9, the department said a technical committee on Filipino dishes began working on adobo standards in May, as they seek to develop a guide on how to cook the popular Filipino dish.

The proposal also involved documenting the “common way” to prepare the local dishes, as there are “various cooking methods published online by food writers, bloggers, and vloggers.”

This move, however, left a bitter taste in netizens’ mouths.

Respect variety of tastes

The flak came from netizens who said that the trade department must respect regional and cultural differences.

Ang daming problema ang 🇵🇭, e2 ang gngwa nla. Adobo, just like any other 🇵🇭 dishes, is a diverse comfort food depende s lugar at panlasa ng bawat Pilipino. Ano ba yn. pic.twitter.com/NzrfVBtJ9B

— Jeff Plazo (@incostirva) July 10, 2021

is there even a standard to begin with? although there are basics to it, there are tons of ways to cook adobo in every province. i’m not even sure if this is something the DTI should mess with.

— Dennis Roda (@dennisroda) July 10, 2021

But the differences in taste do not only occur among regions. Twitter user @is_it_right said even each household has its own version of the popular Filipino dish.

@DtiPhilippines the beauty of adobo is that no adobo tastes the same. Every family has their own recipe.

— wonderer (@is_it_right) July 10, 2021

Whatever form of Adobo you make is a valid form of Adobo, the same way that whatever Filipino culture you come from, you are still Filipino.

The beauty of Filipino food is its diversity that is rooted in our diverse cultural heritage, not some standard cookbook. https://t.co/5LcFibRZvh

— Arby (@janarby_) July 10, 2021

Is there really a “standard recipe” for each Filipino dish? Twitter user @GuchoPRMaven asked rhetorically.

Ignore the purists and food zealots. There is no such thing as 'standard' or 'authentic' cuisine. https://t.co/na9gOSkBdV

— Gucho กู่โจ้ เจริญสุข ตาคอน 🌸🌺🌱💗 (@GuchoPRMaven) July 10, 2021

So 'eto na ang basehan sa mga cooking contest? hahaha but seriously can we really standardize cooking our 'cultural staples and dishes'? Aren't we stepping the line of cooking as an art and that local knowledge that is inherent and unique to cultures? https://t.co/ZzI9YWVkHL

— EvilAd VihokratanaTechaapaikhun (@jiggerbalana) July 10, 2021

the point of their popularity is there's no standard recipe. the blooming variance of Filipino dishes is characteristic of the varied culture we produce.

"standardizing" misses the point. the beauty of Filipino culture is in multiplicity yet capacity to unite against colonizers. https://t.co/Weh8PGAOX6

— ida 📿 (@judestlasting) July 10, 2021

The department also took a hit for the ill-timed standardization. Netizens argued that there were more important issues the trade department should be focusing on, especially as the country continues to grapple with COVID-19 and the economy has yet to fully recover from the continuous lockdowns.

Finding the ‘adobo czar’?

Being under the national government, the department was not spared from particular jabs on social media.

Do we now need an “adobo czar?” Netizen Ruben Malabuyo suggested that the department might be hiring czars for each ulam (viand) soon.

Maybe the DTI could help us end the longstanding confusion among Pinoy dishes mechado, afritada, and caldereta?

Sa gitna ng napakataas na presyo ng bilihin, sa dami ng scam online, at sa dami ng dapat i-improve sa consumer rights act, ang naisip talagang gawin ng DTI ay standardize ang adobo? Matuwa pa ako kung nagclarify na lang sila ano pinagkaiba ng mechado, afritada, at caldereta eh 😅

— Angelica Reyes (@missanjreyes) July 10, 2021

Some also suggested that Filipino dishes should not be the ones held to a higher standard – but the Philippine government.

https://twitter.com/vkalowitsky/status/1413795098421198848

Yung DTI bumuo ng komite upang magtakda ng mga pamantayan para raw iangat ang kalidad ng adobo at kung anu-ano pang ulam.

Sana ganyan din ang sigasig ng pamahalaan sa mga isyung makabuluhan at maglatag ng mga pamantayang dapat tup’din ng mga halal na ofisyal ngayong pandemya.

— Gabriel (@rielizations) July 10, 2021

Standards po sa gobyerno, kelan? https://t.co/XHxseMRlUv

— Chino Delavin (@chinodelavin) July 10, 2021

Government can’t set a bar for themselves

So they’re setting a bar on Adobo instead. https://t.co/45iSuKcdJU

— Mochi.tsx (@ahiyaLala) July 10, 2021

Netizens also took a jab at the recent controversy by Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III, who said the need for licensure exams for certain professions is no longer needed.

https://twitter.com/pripri_gosakto/status/1413843443265150982

Read more tweets on the issue below.

‘Stop policing my adobo’ – Curated tweets by rapplerdotcom

What are your thoughts on this? Share them in the comments and replies or join The Rappler Room on Facebook! – Rappler.com