BAGUIO CITY – With the support of the Department of Tourism-Cordillera Administrative Region (DOT-CAR), the Up North Business Club (UNBC) launches the 1st ever North Luzon Alternative Health and Wellness Bazaar on April 9 to 10, at the Newtown Plaza Convention Center, Baguio City.
The bazaar features booths with organic and natural products, tools and equipment for integrative health, and local vendors that promote holistic medicine, complementary therapy, fitness, and dietary practices.
The two-day event was packed with wellness activities; with seminar workshops on gut health, pain relief, holistic healing, business management, and people handling skills on April 9, and the wellness competitions, such as the SPAgalingan “Dress Up your Spa” and healthy beverage-making competition on April 10.
Centered on the theme, “What is Real Food? Our Need to Heal and Stay Healthy!”, the event aims to boost businesses that promote holistic practices and nurture a community that values well-being as a lifestyle.
Jeannine Chan, President of Up North Business Club said that the bazaar aims to heighten the interest in alternative wellness, to campaign for wellness tourism, and “to bring awareness to people, of what real wellness is, what real food is.”
She highlighted that the holistic approach, does not only promote wellness, business-related tourism, or livelihood alone; but provides significance to their campaign for health awareness, where many people maintain various pains; rooted in the more traditional methods of medicine that Filipinos have been practicing for generations, but supported by evidence-based practices that complement mainstream healthcare, rather than replacing it.
“We ask Filipinos who have grown up with that. No matter what, it’s ingrained in us to go back to natural healing, and very abundant siya. We know that it must be a cheaper alternative, kailangan lang the demand must be higher.” Chan expressed.
DOT-CAR Regional Director, Jovita Ganongan commended the event as a growing space in the traditional and complementary medicine and wellness economy in the Philippines, having grown from 34.9 billion dollars to 41 billion dollars from 2019 to 2022; ranking 22nd globally out of 218 countries and 8th in the Asia Pacific Region out of 45 countries in the data shown by Global Wellness Institute.
“These figures show that while beauty and nutrition lead the market, there is a growing space for holistic and experiential wellness on the list. From indigenous healing, modalities and plant-based wellness, our region holds so much potential as a center for alternative wellness. Events like these contribute to a larger movement, one that champions health, heritage, and sustainability.” Ganongan stated.
Affirming the “Filipino Brand of Wellness” developed by the DOT, the bazaar seeks to foster wellness tourism in the Philippines and develop different modalities and treatments rooted in Filipino tradition that can be advocated in different wellness centers across the country. By Agnes Dela Peña
