Another young and beautiful lady, Anna Villaraza Suarez.  Anna is the wife of one of the best friends of my youngest brother, Quito.  She is First lady to Governor Jayjay Suarez and helps him promote the people and the products of Quezon Province.  When JayJay became Governor in 2010, She would attend the annual week long Agri -exposition and the Nyugyugan Festival in Quezon where members of KALIPI ( Kalipunan ng Liping Pilipina, of which she is the honorary chairperson ), farmers and fisherfolk would sell out all their good to buyers from manila and neighbouring towns.  She told me that they would sell a lot during the festival though she wants them to have continuous income throughout the year.   Anna visited the 39 municipalities and two cities of Quezon where she had the chance to taste and try the different food products made by the locals.  She says ” A lot of these products are excellent.  The packaging just needed improvement and the producers given market access.”  And this is how Q Proudly Quezon Made Products was born!   Ultimately the goal of Q is to establish a federation of Q product manufacturers in the province to sustain the production, promotion and marketing of the products 

One need not go far to taste the flavours of Quezon province.  Anna has brought them closer to us and has made them available for more people to try.  She branded the products under the Q label.  Anna did the minimalistic and clean looking logo.  ” We want the look to become more appealing to the Manila crowd, to upgrade the look of typical locally produced products.  It has to be attractive because we are carrying the name of the province and we want people to have a positive impression of Quezon Province as a whole.”  That statement alone tells me positive things about how the couple is running the province….and I like it! 🙂  

Arrow root ( uraro ) cookies made by the wives and children of a farmer’s cooperative and developed with the Department of Science & Technology ( DOST ) , The Department of Trade ad Industry, and provincial and municipal local and government units

Q corn coffee made by KALIPI members from roasted corn grits

Yellow ginger tea by KALIPI and Rural Improvement Club members

  The Milkfish in oil is the result of an oversupply of the fish during harvest time.  And to protect the farmers from lowering their prices, the lady members of the fishermen’s cooperative decided to make a product out of it

  Shredded smoked fish flakes, produced by the fishermen-husbands of KALIPI members using tamban and galunggong and ideal for any pandit dish, monggo, pasta or rice

 Pickled garlic made by the Federation of Farmers Association and best served with grilled foods as an appetiser and as part of a cheese platter

 Small time enterprises and simple families, known for their commitment to quality and time tested recipes, are behind the best selling shrimp paste 

 Pancit habhab

 Anna told me this is how they eat the pancit – they roll it in leaves and then slide it down their mouths from the leaf 

 Longganiza which I love!!  

 Beef tapa – a different kind of tapa – it is dried and you just have to fry it quickly in oil until brown and crispy – Yum!

 And finally the Crispy pata! YUM!!  Keep frozen and just bring it out of the freezer before frying and fry in hot oil so it will be crispy ( DO NOT DEFROST  before cooking )

 Available at ECHOStore Serendra ( Bonifacio Global City ) and ECHOStore Centris ( Quezon City ).  Orders can also be placed at 0928-524-2753  or 0917-817-2552 or ( 632) 779-7249 or through email at proudlyquezonmade@gmail.com.

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