Ecuagénera is characterized by its generosity. It’s alive with the textures and colors of every one of its more than 8,000 orchid varieties (between species and hybrids, local and foreign). Latent in the way the company’s president, José Portilla, places them at the service of the promotion of his country. Strong within its foundations, that protect the diversity of flora in the country and in the world: Ecuagénera has helped identify, in 20 years, over 1000 new species.
It is the first company in the country to obtain the C.I.T.E.S permit for export, with which Ecuador became recognized worldwide for the wealth of its orchids. Currently, over 70 orchid exhibitions are prepared worldwide and flowers are exported to five continents. With points of sale in Gualaceo, Quito, Guayaquil and Cuenca, Ecuagénera also organizes cultivation workshops and open houses to promote the value of this natural resource.
This dream began 80 years ago, in the province of Morona Santiago (in Bomboiza), with the arrival of the Italian Father Ángel Andretta, who forged friendship with the Portilla Andrade family. When Father Ángel was transferred to Paute, José and Mario Portilla met him, marking the beginning of Ecuagénera.
Experts on research, conservation, reproduction, cultivation, marketing and ecotourism issues related to orchids, they work with the support of its 70 collaborators. What drives him? Well, José maintains, “How can we define who we are, if we don’t know where we come from?” the words built into Ecuagénera’s philosophy.
