Eco-Friendly Fiestas

We Filipinos have roughly more than a hundred fiestas annually—talk about being party animals! Each barangay alone gets one fiesta. Add to that all the feast days of patron saints, month-long celebrations, then a few red-letter days and voila, you have a population primed to party!

But what tends to come alongside these celebrations is a lot of plastic and waste. Thankfully, our culture is also able to make a huge difference in that regard. Whichever part of the year you’re reading this, you’ll likely have more parties ahead of you, whether you’re organizing or attending. So, here are a couple of tips to make the coming celebrations sustainable and eco-friendlier.

Feast Like a Filipino

Paper plates? Plastic cups? Disposable spoons and forks? Convenience has its trade-offs, but we Pinoys grew up knowing how to go around this issue. Ever been in a boodle fight? Not a plate, spoon, or fork in sight, but smiles are everywhere! Banana trees grow virtually everywhere in our beautiful country, and a true waste is not making the best use of those big leaves as substitutes for plates.

We Southeast Asians are also really good with our hands, so much so that we use it for eating. Kamayan is a tradition that also doubles as a sustainable eating solution. For some reason, it feels amazing to do it during breakfast rice meals, but no one’s stopping you from doing it in all meals at home. And hey, less things to wash afterwards is always a good thing, right?

Kain Tayo sa Labas...ng Bahay 

“Eating out” commonly means getting dressed, riding or commuting somewhere considerably far, then dining in at a restaurant somewhere. But for fiestas and any other celebrations, taking “kain tayo sa labas” literally can serve as a net positive for your household and the environment. For one, you have natural ventilation, meaning little to no need for fans and air conditioning—say hello to lower electricity bills!  

The late afternoon sun’s generally all the light you need, and it’s just a few clock rotations away before the “golden hour,” the ideal lighting for picture-taking. When the sun sets, just bring out the candles—no reason to save them just for brownouts! Prop a candle in the middle of a reused glass or mason jar, place it in the middle of a table, and you have an instant candlelit dinner!

Biodegradable Banderitas 

We Pinoys love our colors—reds, whites, blues, yellows, and many more! During fiestas, you’re bound to see them dangling as streams, laces, and triangle cutouts strung up from one end of the street to another. Instead of having them as plastics, opt to have them in paper material like papel de hapon or crepe paper. Same color, less harm to the environment.  

The opposite end of one-time use decorations also has its benefits, albeit with some tradeoffs of its own. Having durable decorations like heavy-duty fairy lights will mean you’ll always have something to use, not having to buy a new batch repeatedly. Just think ahead about having space for storage.

No Bones to Pick

Chicken, pork, and fish dishes are amazing at parties. Their bones, however, tend not to be. So, choosing to have food that creates less waste would be a great and sustainable option. For example, lechon bellies have that same lechon taste with less bones to gather up afterwards. Fish and chicken fillet meals are great finger food options and ulams with none of the post-feast hassle.  

If you’re at a loss for recipes, give this tasty chicken nuggets and buttered fish fillet a try for your next fiesta celebrations!

It’s good—healthy, even—to find reasons to celebrate. But what’s also worth celebrating is doing your part in making sure the world is going in a healthier, environmentally friendlier direction