Dagupan eyes world’s longest barbecue record

DAGUPAN CITY — This city known for its best-tasting bangus (milkfish) will bid for the World’s Longest Barbecue instead of the World’s Longest Grill.

This came after the Guinness World Record informed the Bangus Festival Committee that it could accept the attempt for the longest barbecue but not longest milkfish grill as a record category.

Various events are lined up for the Bangus Festival according to Manny Yao, festival chairman and Dagupan Bangus Jaycees president.

The Bangus Festival was conceptualized by City Mayor Benjamin Lim to focus on the local bangus industry and promote the city as the "Bangus Capital of the World."

The said festival will coincide with the time-honored Pista’y Dayat (sea festival) chaired this year by lawyer Clarence Decano, Rotary Club of Dagupan president. One of the events for the Bangus Festival is the "Kalutan ed Dagupan," where the city is bidding for the world’s longest grill.

The organizing committee of the Bangus Festival invited the Guinness to document the holding of the "Kalutan ed Dagupan," the city’s bid for the world’s longest grill and the "Liket tan Gayaga ed Kalutan," a bid for the world’s largest grill party.

The event (Kalutan) will cover the whole stretch of the city’s main road, the A.B.Fernandez Avenue, on April 30.

Following the organizers’ written intent to enter the largest grill category, Guinness’ Records Research Services Officer Susan Morrison replied via e-mail to "Kalutan ed Dagupan" event chairman Frederick Abesamis that Guinness will not accept the longest milkfish grill as a category.

As an alternative, since a longest grill category does not exist, the organizers may attempt for the longest barbecue.

According to Morrison, the current record for the longest barbecue is held by Peru.

The longest barbecue is organized by La Municipalidad Provincial de Canchis which measures 613 meters long and made up of 536 grills each measuring 1m x 72cm was built in Sicuani, Peru on Nov. 13, 1999.

Yao said that the city can easily surpass this feat as they are now preparing for a 1,001 meter-long grill, each grill measuring 1.20m in length. Some 40,000 participants are expected to join and witness the event.