IE Produce proudly champions health, wellbeing and organic produce, and has sat on the corner of Barrys Point Road and Anzac Street in Takapuna since 1994.
Organic produce is a passion for IE Produce; it's healthier for humans and supports a sustainable agricultural system. Functional Foods is the best-selling category at IE Produce – foods that provide health benefits beyond their nutritional value. There is an incredible variety in the store, including vitamins, minerals, fibres, whole foods, fruit and veggies, whole grains, beans, berries and dairy products.
The organic ethics
As New Zealand's first Bio-Gro Certified Organic health food store since October 2000, all IE Produce's grocery products are produced without synthetic pesticides, herbicides or fertilisers, with no genetic modification or antibiotic exposure.
“We’re serious about organics. Our store is inspected annually to ensure we are going above and beyond to protect organic integrity before the certification can be renewed,” said Joyce Lowyim, owner operator, boss, chief worker and shelf stacker at IE Produce.
To ensure customers are making informed decisions about grocery products, Lowyim is continually learning and educating herself in order to share her knowledge. She is a certified Body Ecologist (trained under Donna Gates, founder of the Body Ecology diet), which operates on seven health and healing principles that create a robust inner ecosystem. She is also a Certified Integrative Nutrition Health Coach (trained via IIN Integrative Nutrition in New York). She helps customers nourish, heal and thrive in all aspects of their lives.
Hippocrates said, “Let food by thy medicine and medicine be thy food,” and this is the quote Lowyim lives by.
The history behind the store
Owner Joyce Lowyim grew up in a small town in Whakatane, where she and her siblings worked in the family produce store. She remembers standing on an apple box to reach the counter and serve customers. As a Chinese immigrant, her dad had strong beliefs surrounding natural healing remedies that instilled her lifelong knowledge and inspiration.
After leaving school, Joyce worked in the family retail and wholesale business, gaining all the required truck licences to do the long-haul produce runs between Rotorua, Hamilton, Pukekohe, Auckland and Hawkes Bay. She could be found unloading pallets with the fork hoist or negotiating bulk prices with growers at produce markets. Her first role outside the family business was at The Fruit Shed in Northcote.
Her husband and business partner Phillip has an agricultural background and was produce manager at New World Papatoetoe before moving to Vege King West Harbour. After six months, he was offered the opportunity to purchase the store, and the pair's combined knowledge bought IE Produce to life in 1989. The second IE Produce store was opened in Takapuna in 1994. Joyce is incredibly proud of how the store has grown.
Joyce Lowyim also runs nutrition workshops and seminars for customers, with suppliers presenting educational information, giving demonstrations and supplying product tastings. They are run fortnightly or monthly on Wednesday evenings from 7-9pm. Entry is a gold coin donation, and over the years IE Produce has donated $28,000 to North Shore Hospice.
“As a resident of Takapuna, I can say that IE Produce is an absolute godsend when it comes to conscious artisan products, brands, and fresh foods. Because of its bespoke offerings, I find the store fosters a really cool and diverse community of interesting people, many of whom I have had the pleasure of meeting in the aisles over the years, as well as the staff. I always recommend IE to my friends and peers, especially when they are looking for conscious alternatives that you can’t find elsewhere.” – Karn Hall, IE Produce customer.
