NU6 Increasing Production of Duman by Bong Canlas

Increasing the Production of Duman

Duman is a seasonal unique cereal that is colored green – gold  and is currently produced by certain families in Sta. Rita, Pampanga only in the months of November and December of every year.  It is made of malagung lacatan malutu or young red glutinous rice that is turned into duman by way of manual pounding and unique way of roasting using a wooden stove with low fire just enough to maintain and preserve the softness of the grains while avoiding the turning of the grains into pinipig.  Duman enthusiasts usually pair it with chocolateng batirol or hot carabao milk.  Because of the shortage of supply of duman, it is relatively expensive and is sold at no less than PHP 1,250.00 for every 800 grams. 

In the past years, only few people knew about this duman from Sta. Rita, Pampanga.  But as years went by, more and more people came to know about and like duman.  And even if these people are willing to pay for its high price, the supply problem persists, since duman is only available in November and December and never on other months of the year. Duman is not sold in stores or even in the market place.  You can only buy duman if you know the families who produce them or at the designated place for the duman festival which is celebrated on the first week of December.  What contributes more to the shortage in supply is that there are families who buy their one year supply of duman and store their foil - wrapped duman stocks in their refrigerators.

What contributes to the scarcity of duman?  The planting of this unique variety of red glutinous rice is best done during the rainy season, preferably during the months of June to August. It is said that the plants would bear grains only when they feel the "tiup ning amiam or the cold northerly wind"¹.  That is the reason why harvesting is done only in November and December.  It is also believed that harvesting in the months of January or February would leave a "bitter aftertaste"¹ to the duman.  Thus, it is useless to plant during the other months of the year.

How do we increase the supply of duman in order to make it available to more people and at a lower price?    I believe it would help if we could ask assistance from the rice experts of UPLB so they could do a research on other varieties of glutinous rice which could be used for the production of duman.  To solve the problem of limited land area which could be used for planting the red glutinous rice, it is better to share the planting procedures to other farmers living in cool regions like the Cordilleras and encourage them to plant this red glutinous rice.  Lastly, we can also grow this red glutinous rice in greenhouses where the ideal temperature and humidity for growing it may be controlled and maintained.  As to the conversion of the harvested red glutinous rice into duman, I think it's about time that the secrets of duman – making are shared to interested parties. 3.5 (unknown author)

Reference:

¹ Duman: Stepping Back in Time; author unknown; retrieved from http://santaritapampanga.gov.ph/index.php/about-santa-rita/news-events/140-duman-festival