Healthy Soils Organic Fertilizer

CLSV is a social enterprise that collects organic plant and animal waste from various sources and transforms it into organic fertilizer.

By so doing, we are transforming waste management challenges into an opportunity for healthier and sustainable farming practices, thus providing healthy food without harming the environment.

Closed-Loop System Ventures is a social enterprise which transforms waste management and environmental challenges into an opportunity for a healthier and more sustainable farming system. We collect organic plant and animal waste from various sources and transform it into organic fertilizer. We produce a unique mix of organic fertilizer with major components such as compost, biochar, animal manure and biopesticide. Our fertilizer improves soil fertility without causing any harm to the environment, it has no negative health impact on consumers and it naturally repels pests and equally leads to the growth of healthy crops. We valorize waste and change people's perception of waste. We have a great impact and role to play in promoting sustainable urban communities due to our zero waste vision of a society and the numerous benefits that our end product has in the agricultural sector.

Building sustainable communities requires the adoption of sustainable technologies and Eco-friendly products as well as the cultivation of green habits. These are the things we are addressing with our solution.

If scaled, this project has the potential to gradually lead to the establishment of circular economies all around the world. It will greatly reduce the amount of waste that ends up in landfills and along the streets, thus giving landfills a longer lifespan. People will attach value to the organic waste they produce thereby imbibing greener waste management habits in people.

Transforming the organic waste into organic fertilizer, will lead to provision of a reliable and affordable source of organic soil fertility enhancer, thus increasing the quantity of healthy organic farm products brought to the market and promoting healthy societies. People will have access to an alternative source of income through the waste they generate on a regular basis through the establishment of a compensatory system.

CLSV addresses the problem of poor waste management and the lack of waste valorization schemes. We have huge amounts of waste being produced daily, over 60% of which is organic waste. These wastes are generally disposed of in landfills or abandoned along the streets and open dumpsites where they putrefy, producing unbearable odors which make people uncomfortable. Apart from the odors arising from the organic waste matter, it equally renders the environment filthy. We have therefore come out with an end product which addresses the issue of poor farming practices characterized by the excessive use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides.

The raw materials required to produce the organic fertilizer are present in abundance but the resources to fully exploit is what is lacking. With the appropriate resources to efficiently collect all the organic waste being produced, the quantity of organic fertilizer produced from it will be enough to increase the practice of organic farming by over 50%. San Francisco for example has been able to put in place a system of zero waste which is currently yielding positive results. They transform almost all of the organic waste into compost and have greatly reduced the waste that ends up in landfills. 

Our solution will have impacts in two main sectors; the waste management and the agricultural sector. It will improve on waste management practices, increase in waste valorization,  in the agricultural sector, it will lead to an increase in the practice of organic farming by 50%. Farmers will be the end beneficiaries of the product (organic fertilizer). The organic fertilizer will be packaged in 50 kg bags and sold to the farmers at moderate prices. Trash cans and waste collection bags will be given to people to collect their waste four times per week.

number of individuals who adopt waste sorting - improved waste management practices

Reduction in the amount of waste that ends up in landfills. - 50% increase in waste valorization

number of farmers who practice organic farming - increase in organic farming by 50%

Our solution makes use of environmental engineering to design a technology which transforms organic waste into organic fertilizer. We design a pyrolyser which transforms part of the waste into biochar while the other part of it is transformed into compost through the process of composting. The organic fertilizer we produce is a combination of the biochar, compost, animal manure and also biopesticide. All these make our fertilizer very unique in its composition and very efficient in its action. At the end of the day, we provide a product within the agricultural sector which improves crop yield in an environment-friendly manner.

Our technology involves collecting organic waste from people mostly the less privileged individuals who need an alternative source of income. We have designed a compensation system through which people are paid in cash or kind for bringing to us what will serve as a valuable resource.

Also, we produce the organic fertilizer which is sold at very reasonable prices to farmers who are most often from the lower class. These farmers are the end beneficiaries of the organic fertilizer and this helps them to improve on crop yield and crop quality.

The end product (organic fertilizer) will be packaged in 50 kg and 25 kg bags for deployment into the market. Farmers will have access to this fertilizer at relatively cheaper prices. A bag of 50 kg of organic fertilizer will be sold at 5000 F CFA (Approx. 10 USD) as opposed to chemical fertilizers which cost about 20.000 F CFA (approx. 40 USD). We intend to supply the organic fertilizer through agric stores, farmers cooperatives, CLSV sales points and also onsite delivery services.

Once we begin mass production of the organic fertilizer, we will be able to generate income from its sales and this will permit the company to grow and scale to other regions and countries.

We intend to get involved in different revenue generating activities such as owning a demonstration site where we will practice organic farming. The output of the organic farm will be sold and it will generate income for sustainability. Other income generating activities will include poultry farming and sales of poultry products such as eggs while the manure will be used in the production of the organic fertilizer.

We intend to offer other services such as delivery services and consultation services for organizations and institutions wishing to organize trainings and capacity building seminars in local communities.

The lack of funds to acquire the required resources is the major limiting factor for the success of the solution.

Another limiting factor is the lack of waste sorting habits which requires a lot of investment in sensitization and awareness campaigns.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lisI8lsoDu0&app=desktop

https://www.facebook.com/cls.ventures/

I am applying to be a solver because it presents a wonderful opportunity to network with experts who can help us scale our solution beyond the pilot phase. I wish to take advantage of the resources, the mentorship, and know-how of the leaders and change makers who will be present at the event.

I equally want to grow my network because network is wealth. The quality of people that I will meet and who will mentor us will be a major turning point for us and for the success of our proposed solution.

Our current partners include:

Restaurants who produce large amounts or organic waste.

Market sellers of vegetables and farm products

Poultry farmers who provide animal manure

Our competitors are mostly indirect competitors. Direct competitors include RADI Organics.