Indigenous Rice Advocate Received Prestigious Food Award
Rowena Gonnay earned recognition for her work preserving indigenous rice varieties and biodiversity in the Philippines.
Updated on Oct. 3, 2026 in Healthy Food
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Rowena Gonnay, a co-founder of the Slow Food Community Pasil, has been honored with the 2026 ByungSoo Kim Award by Slow Food International. The award celebrates her contributions to protecting indigenous food heritage and local biodiversity.
Why it matters
This award highlights the importance of preserving traditional crop varieties, such as indigenous Unoy and Chong-ak rice, which are vital for maintaining regional food security and biodiversity.
Gonnay has established 13 Slow Food communities, building on the success of the Pasil community which was recognized as the first Indigenous Slow Food Community in the Philippines in 2019. The efficacy of these community-led conservation efforts remains under long-term evaluation.
The players
Rowena Gonnay
A co-founder of the Slow Food Community Pasil who focuses on preserving indigenous rice varieties and biodiversity.
Slow Food International
A global organization that promotes sustainable food systems, biodiversity protection, and the preservation of food heritage.
The details
In the Pasil region, women farmers manage the essential work of seed selection and preservation to maintain the purity of traditional rice strains. By organizing into Slow Food communities, these growers promote food production principles that are considered good, clean, and fair. This approach relies on maintaining traditional agricultural knowledge passed down through generations to ensure the survival of heritage rice crops.
Timeline
2019: Pasil was recognized as the first Indigenous Slow Food Community in the Philippines.
September 24 to 27, 2026: Terra Madre Salone del Gusto was held in Turin, Italy.
September 25, 2026: Rowena Gonnay participated in an online session for the Terra Madre event.
Health Landscape
This development aligns with the global movement to preserve traditional crop diversity against the erosion caused by industrial agriculture. It follows the model set by the Terra Madre Salone del Gusto international network in prioritizing the role of indigenous knowledge in sustainable food systems.
Supporting local, heritage crop varieties can encourage greater dietary diversity, which is beneficial for gut microbiome health. If you are interested in exploring local grain varieties, consider checking with local farmers markets or community-supported agriculture programs in your area.
The takeaway
Preserving indigenous rice varieties is a key strategy for protecting nutritional biodiversity and cultural food heritage. Consumers can support these efforts by choosing diverse, locally grown grains when available in their region.
Further reading
Learn more about the importance of traditional crop varieties in our Healthy Food section.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Rappler.
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