Echomarket offers fresh produce

MANILA, Philippines - Social entrepreneur Pacita Juan and her partners behind the Echostore concept have expanded their business with the opening of Echomarket, which offers fresh natural and organic vegetables and other products.

Dubbed as Echomarket Sustainable Farms, the new store offers organic products seven days a week. It carries natural and organic vegetable and fruit produce, free range chicken and meats, fresh milk and eggs, artisan breads and cheeses.

Reena Francisco, one of the partners behind Echostore, said the idea to open Echomarket stemmed from a desire to help small food producers.

“We actually began to ask friends who supply us fruits, veggies, chicken for our personal consumption and our other food establishments if they wanted to join us in doing this, and they were all excited,” Francisco said.

As such, Echomarket embraces the same philosophy of sustainability, Francisco said.

This essentially means supporting local food producers and organic farmer groups all over the country. 

It brings together, under one roof, the weekend market sellers and organic suppliers.

   Among the suppliers of Echomarket are Agnes and Tony Boy Escalante of Manuel Pedro Farms, Aleli Pensacola of Daila for her chickens products, Cordillera Network for their organic mountain rice, Carlo Lorenzana’s Sunmade rice and Olive Puentespina for their Malagos cheese products.

   Cooperatives from Laguna, Bulacan, and the other existing communities, which Echostore has embraced for the past three years, have also started to send their products.

   Juan, who oversees Echofarms in Amadeo, Cavite where she grows organic vegetables for use in the various establishments said they decided to open Echomarket to cater to people asking about their products.

   She noted for instance that Reena’s mushroom burger patties in Echocafe have a loyal following of people who also keep ordering them.

   Jeannie Javelosa, another partner, said Echomarket would also serve as a venue for retail distribution for small cooperatives.

   “It becomes another retail distribution space for small communities, cooperatives and organic farmers to come together in a mall area and make their healthy produce available to busy city folks.