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PHILIPPINE RETAILING
Harvesting Hope With Urban Farmers PH: A Sustainable Model for Philippine Retail and Urban Green Spaces
Urban Farmers PH Farmer in Chief and SilverWorks CEO Louie Gutierrez recently spoke at the 2026 Perspectives Summit of SM Supermalls to inspire their managers to think about new ways to implement sustainable practices with his experience in running the nonprofit organization.
The nonprofit with a social enterprise model nurtures unused public spaces, uplifts the recognition of agriculture, and promotes biodiversity-friendly and sustainable farming in its sites at the Bel Air and BGC Community Farm.
Sprouting Impact
Since 2020, Urban Farmers PH has expanded to its second site at BGC in partnership with Fort Bonifacio Development Corporation( FBDC). It successfully established 50 community farms and conducted over 300 workshops on urban farming and sustainability— even gaining recognition as an ATI Learning Site for Agriculture.
During the Outstanding Filipino Retailers Awards in 2023, its partnership with SilverWorks earned it the Pandemic Resiliency and Sustainability Awards.
Urban Farmers PH shows the possibility of integrating corporate social responsibility with business strategy, contributing directly to sustainable development goals through promoting urban agriculture and now by reducing food waste through its latest project: zero waste urban farms.
Zero Waste Urban Farms
Budding Collaborations
Continuing its mission of growing sustainable urban green spaces, the organization has collaborated with many partners within the PRA. CW Home Depot donated its pallet containers to be upcycled as plant beds in the farms. Ayala Land supported through initiating the collaboration with FBDC and doing workshops on farming and pottery. Bench released Urban Farmers PH shirts with donated graphics by Robert Alejandro. Kenny Rogers received honors at the Stevie Awards for its collaboration in its Farmvocacy campaign.
Mercury Drug x SureServ:
The Leading Drugstore in the Philippines partners up with The Lending Hand for Healthcare
The 6th of November 2025 saw Mercury Drug officially launch their partnership with SureServ, the country’ s premier healthcare lending app, through the Gamot Now, Pay Later( GNPL) program. In attendance were Mercury Drug executives, SureServ officers led by Mr. Johnny Bondoc( CEO), and other partner representatives.
Combining the guarantee provided by Mercury Drug as the country’ s trusted and caring health and wellness partner and the convenience of the healthcare credit line offered by SureServ, GNPL affords employees from companies partnered with
SureServ the ability to purchase medicines and other healthcare needs through the SureServ app. By simply scanning the SureServ QR code at Mercury Drug store using the SureServ app, employees can immediately avail the products they need, allowing them to pay at a later date through a simple salary adjustment.
The GNPL program was born out of the two companies’ desire to make health and wellness even more accessible and affordable to the common Filipino, removing the burden of thinking about what to do and where to procure medicine and other healthcare needs should the need arise. With the company where one is‘ nakasisiguro gamot ay laging bago’ joining forces with the‘ kauna-unahang credit card app para sa healthcare’, the Filipino community is now better equipped for when emergency situations arise that require medicines and other health and personal care needs.
Each year, 24 % of all food produced is wasted. In Metro Manila alone, an estimated 2,175 tons of food scraps are thrown away daily. Composting can help significantly reduce food waste— with the urban farms in need of compost to grow food regularly, it can turn these food scraps in the landfills into growers’ gold. Urban Farmers PH is now looking for partners in helping create more circular urban spaces to help in this endeavor.
For collaborations in growing circular urban green spaces, contact info @ urbanfarmersph. com.