The trend nowadays is toward health and wellness. This trend is evident by the rising market on wellness wherein most people are becoming more and more aware of health. Here in the Philippines specifically in Metro Manila, it can be observed that there is growth in the number of gyms and spas as well as the number of health related products as observed in the market and in media. This marks the rise of the health- conscious Filipino consumers. There can be few people in the Filipino food industry who have failed to notice the importance of healthy food. One of the most important aspects of staying healthy is with the food that we eat. The food that we eat at each mealtime determines the kind of nutrients that we would be getting. There have been a lot of changes in food purchasing behavior of Filipinos in the recent years. It is evident that the awareness of and attitudes toward food attributes such as taste, nutritional qualities and convenience are the key determinants of food choice and these attitudes and perceptions are in turn influenced by a number of personal characteristics such as education, socioeconomic status, age and sex. The arguments for and against healthy foods specifically the organic ones have been well and widely studied. A number of claims including environmental benefits, improved animal welfare, healthy eating and higher quality have been advanced in favor of this.

The healthy food market in the Philippines is still at its infancy stage wherein the market is defined to be supported by higher-income, health conscious Filipinos. One of the market’s major constraints is the lack of awareness on healthy foods among Filipino shoppers. For instance, it was identified that organic food market has traditionally been a very specialist niche market and is now becoming an increasing focus in the major food retailers’ offer. A number of general issues identified such as the price of healthy food vis-Á -vis conventional food wherein generally the price of organic food has been higher than those of its conventional counterparts. Well an organic cabbage would cost more than a pack of noodles in our case. This for the reason that generally within the retail trade, the conventional wisdom has been that the price premium on organic food reflects the fact that it is more expensive to produce and that all the handling, distribution and marketing costs do not enjoy the economies of scale associated with conventional high volume food lines. The high price or price premium is one of the crucial issues identified here since consumers would often assume this as a guarantee of quality and safety. But through the years, I have observed that with the improving mindset of our kabayans, healthy food market has been moving from a specialist niche market to a much more mainstream position. Organic food retail marketplace is clearly a varied one and quite a number of players are looking to meet growing consumer demands. But then again, access to this type of food is still questionable. As far as I’m aware, only organic vegetables are available in the market. Organic meat however is not yet readily available. But there are very few stores which offer these specialized gourmets and products. Here’s a list of healthy establishments that you can visit around the metro:

Dr. Tam’s Vegan Haus
433 F. Legaspi St. Maybunga, Pasig City

Bodhi (food chain with branches inside shopping malls)
SM Foodcourt, Tutuban, Glorietta 4

Evergreen
Glorietta 4

Corner Tree Cafe
150 Jupiter Street, Miladay Building, Makati City (at Saturn St, Metro Manila)

Greens
92 Sct. Castor Street, Quezon City

Happy Veggie Health Food – Binondo
958 Masangkay St, Binondo

Manila Adventist Medical Center
45 Donada St, 1st floor (corner of Taft Ave and Senator Gil Puyat Avenue, Buendia LRT station, Pasay City)

Healthy Kitchen
141 C Serendra Place, Bonifacio High Street, Bonifacio Global City, Taguig City

Chimara Neo-Vegan Café
Greenbelt 3, Ayala Center, Makati City

Soy Yummy (kiosk)
SM MegaMall, Ortigas Center, Mandaluyong City

My Happy Veggie Health Food
958 Masangkay Street (at Soler St, Manila)

Healthy Options (Rustans)

Veggie Boutique
532 Camia Street, Palm Village, Makati City (near Rockwell)

Country Vegefoods
161 Luna Mencias St, San Juan, San Juan

Legaspi Weekend Market
Legaspi Village, Makati City

BF Paranaque Organic Weekend market
P.Banzon St. BF Homes, Paranaque

The list is quite short. As what has been mentioned earlier, this type of market is still on its infancy stage. True enough, I had a very hard time compiling a list of these recommended stores. Rather than worry about following a fad diet, think about your health and your lifestyle instead. Start by learning which foods are good for you. We are aware that the closer a food is to its natural state, the better it is. Healthy food shopping is a huge challenge for people with busy lifestyles as well as healthy eating. It may even hurt your pocket a bit but at the end of the day, we will all agree with one thing: HEALTH IS WEALTH