Philippines: Behind BGC supermarket and hospital hides this 1,500-sqm vegetable farm

Silver jewelry purveyor Louie Gutierrez knew he had to pivot his business when Covid struck—he found gold in urban farming.

By Rhia Grana
ANCX
Apr 12 2022

Excerpt:

If you’re a frequent Bonifacio Global City visitor but only seek out its dining spots and cafes, you’ll be surprised to know there’s actually a 1,500-square meter vegetable farm right in the heart of this concrete jungle. It’s called BGC Community Farm by Urban Farmers, and its located at the corner of 5th Avenue and 34th Street, just right behind S&R and St. Luke’s Medical Center.

The urban farming project was spearheaded by social entrepreneur Louie Gutierrez and was made possible through the support of volunteers, Ayala Corporation (which lent the property), and global vegetable seed company East-West Seed (which helped set up the farm).

The farm grows a variety of greens (lettuce, arugula, pechay), and soon there will also be tomatoes, eggplants, as well as herbs like basil and mint. For a minimal donation, individual volunteers can learn and experience vegetable farming during weekends (one can harvest a bagful of greens for P200 to P300). Meanwhile, its doors are also open to companies who wish to conduct their Corporate Social Responsibility projects there.

The BGC Community Farm is actually one of three urban farms Louie built since the start of the pandemic. His social enterprise also runs Urban Farmers of Bel-Air in 23 Comet St., Bel-Air 2, Makati City, and the NLEX- SCTEX Community Farm by Urban Farmers in Brgy. 164 Caloocan City.

Louie is actually not an agriculturist or a farmer by profession—he’s a gemologist. He’s the founder of the popular 30-year-old brand Silverworks, a leading retailer of sterling silver jewelry in the Philippines which has over 70 stores nationwide.

Like many business owners, the Covid health crisis caught him by surprise. In fact, prior to the first lockdown in March, he even opened two new Silverworks branches. “The economy was doing well at that time. A lot of SMEs were expanding. So the plan was to add more stores,” he recalls to ANCX.

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