From trash to shoe polish: Nyaga's green business bet

For Abraham Nyaga, discarded paper is more than rubbish destined for an open fire or dumpsite. It is a valuable raw material capable of generating income, addressing environmental challenges and creating jobs.

Founder of Eden Recyclers and an industrial chemist by profession, Nyaga is turning waste paper, especially the discarded learning materials from schools, into industrial-grade carbon black pigment utilised in manufacturing black shoe polish.

His innovation demonstrates how scientific knowledge can be transformed into a commercially viable venture while contributing to environmental conservation.

“My mission is to prove that waste is not simply something to dispose of, but a resource for manufacturing, environmental impact and job creation,” he tells City Biz.

Nyaga founded Eden Recyclers in 2024 after graduating from the Technical University of Kenya, where he studied Industrial Chemistry. His business was born out of undergraduate research that explored how discarded paper could be converted into a valuable black pigment.

His academic training in chemistry and materials science, combined with practical experience burning charcoal in his village, helped him identify an opportunity in the growing problem of paper waste.

Paper is largely made of cellulose, a substance also found in wood. Drawing on this similarity, Nyaga began exploring means of converting discarded paper into a carbon-based material that could serve as a raw ingredient in manufacturing.

Under the supervision of Prof Wilson Mugera, he researched the idea in his undergraduate research project, experimenting with techniques of producing black pigment from papers discarded by students.

What began as an academic experiment evolved into an invention, leading to the development of black shoe polish and a registered patent.

After graduating, Nyaga opted to commercialise the innovation.

“I wanted to turn my university research into an enterprise that could demonstrate how science and entrepreneurship can work together to solve practical environmental challenges,” he says.

Eden Recyclers now collects discarded paper, mainly from schools, and transforms it into carbon black pigment for use in its shoe polish. The enterprise is also building partnerships with learning institutions to recover paper waste while conducting sustainability workshops to educate learners about recycling and resource recovery.

The initiative provides schools an opportunity to reconsider how they handle waste, showing learners that discarded materials can become useful products rather than environmental hazards.

The business has also attracted interest from students and environmentally conscious consumers, who find the idea of using shoe polish made from recovered paper particularly appealing.

For learners, the connection is especially personal: papers that might otherwise have been burned or thrown away can be converted into a product used to keep their school shoes shiny.

Nyaga describes the transformation as turning what could have become an “academic fire” into an essential consumable.

He believes the approach could help reduce the environmental damage related to open burning of paper while highlighting the commercial potential of recycling.

However, building a manufacturing business from an innovative idea has not been without upheavals. The cost of production and limited production capacity and the cost of producing each unit are the biggest challenges.

Though sales are growing, Nyaga acknowledges that expanding production and improving the economics of manufacturing will be crucial to the business’ long-term sustainability.

“But the encouraging response from customers motivates us to keep improving and expanding the business,” he says.

Despite these challenges, Nyaga believes his product has a competitive edge in the market. He says the shoe polish delivers a brighter, longer-lasting shine and comes in packaging designed to make opening the tin easier.

Unlike conventional tins that use twist keys that can detach and make opening difficult, Eden Recyclers has adopted a lid that can be opened by simply tilting it.

The enterprise is also in the final stages of research and development focused at making its polish non-flammable. The move seeks to address safety concerns related to some conventional shoe polishes, especially their potential misuse in school arson incidents.

Beyond shoe polish, Nyaga is exploring opportunities of using waste-derived carbon black pigment in manufacturing black pens and pencils. The products could widen the enterprise’s revenue streams while creating additional use of waste paper.

His ambitions extend beyond building a successful business. He envisions Eden Recyclers becoming a leading green manufacturing enterprise in Kenya, with distribution networks reaching every part of the nation and eventually expanding into regional markets.

The long-term plan includes establishing a dedicated manufacturing facility, increasing production capacity and creating employment opportunities.

“I see myself growing into a great industrialist, using entrepreneurship and science to solve practical environmental challenges,” he says.

He hopes his journey will inspire and motivate learners and aspiring entrepreneurs to look beyond conventional career paths and recognise the opportunities hidden in the day-to-day challenges.