How one Pakistani startup is turning marble waste into fertilizer

Pakistan’s farming sector is quietly changing, and this time, the shift isn’t coming from big corporations. Instead, it is coming from young innovators in Faisalabad, Manahil Akmal and Muhammad Adnan Iqbal, who have turned a stubborn industrial problem into a farming solution.

Their startup, AgriCalcis, takes waste from the marble industry and converts it into fertilizer-grade calcium nitrate, a product farmers usually rely on expensive imports for. What used to pile up as pollution is now being turned into something useful, local, and far more affordable.

Calcium nitrate may sound technical, but its role is simple: it helps plants stand taller and stay healthier. Calcium strengthens cell walls, making crops more resistant to pests, disease, and weather shocks. Nitrogen supports leafy growth and overall development. Together, they improve soil structure, boost crop quality, and drive higher yields — exactly what farmers need to stay profitable in a changing climate.

AgriCalcis extracts high-purity calcium from marble residue using green chemistry and converts it into a liquid fertilizer ready for the field. By doing this locally, the company cuts dependence on imports and reduces the emissions tied to manufacturing and long-haul transport. It’s a circular economy model in practice: taking industrial waste and turning it into something that strengthens food systems.

The benefits stack up. Recycling marble waste reduces pollution and pressure on landfills. Farmers get access to a nutrient-rich fertilizer at a price they can actually work with. And at the national level, homegrown alternatives strengthen economic resilience and support long-term food security.

This work earned them the Winner’s Award in the Circular Economy category at the 12th Tameer Awards powered by Wafi Energy, recognition for solutions that turn community challenges into scalable opportunity.

AgriCalcis is a reminder of what ingenuity here can do. Sustainability and economic empowerment don’t have to compete. Sometimes all it takes is someone willing to look at waste and see the potential to feed a nation.