From Fertilizer Trade to Soil Health: How Tahir Maqsood Wani Is Championing Organic and Bio Fertilizers in India

A third-generation fertilizer trade insider is urging India’s farmers, businesses and policymakers to look beyond this season’s crop and ask what the soil will need in the years ahead.

By Tahir Maqsood Wani, Managing Director, TMW Group | TMW Eco Organic & Bio Fertilizers

INDIA – Tahir Maqsood Wani, Managing Director of TMW Group and TMW Eco Organic & Bio Fertilizers, grew up around India’s fertilizer trade. Today he is raising a question that more farmers, businesses and policymakers are starting to consider: while we focus on what a crop needs today, are we giving enough attention to what the soil will need ten or twenty years from now?

A Family Legacy in India’s Fertilizer Trade

Wani’s family has been associated with the fertilizer business since 1998. Over the years, they worked closely with farmers, fertilizer companies, distributors and the wider agricultural supply chain. That experience gave him a first-hand understanding of the realities of Indian farming, including weather uncertainty, rising input costs and the difficult decisions farmers must make before a crop ever reaches the market.

He understood the importance of the business and why farmers relied on the products available to them. Over time, however, another question began to occupy his mind, one that would change the direction of his work.

The Question That Led to Organic Agriculture

Wani does not view Indian agriculture through a simple chemical-versus-organic lens. Farmers operate under different conditions, their first responsibility is to protect their crops and earn a living, and fertilizers have played an important role in India’s agricultural development.

His concern lies elsewhere: excessive dependence, imbalanced application and the risk of overlooking soil health while focusing only on immediate production. A field may deliver a good crop this season, but organic matter, soil structure, moisture retention and the ability to support future cultivation also matter. These questions, he says, cannot be answered by one product or one farming philosophy. They call for greater awareness, soil testing and responsible nutrient management.

In 2017, Wani began directing his efforts towards biofertilizers and organic manure. The journey was not easy. Developing organic agricultural inputs requires far more than collecting waste and packaging it. Processing, decomposition, quality control, product suitability and farmers’ trust all play a part.

Why Soil Health Matters to Every Indian Farmer

India is too diverse for a single agricultural solution to work everywhere. An apple orchard in Kashmir has different needs from a paddy field in Punjab, a cotton farm in Maharashtra or a vegetable farm in Uttar Pradesh. Yet every one of these farming systems depends on soil conditions.

Soil organic matter can help improve soil structure and moisture retention. Properly processed organic manure adds organic matter and supports beneficial biological activity, while suitable biofertilizers can support specific nutrient-related processes when used under the right conditions. These benefits are increasingly relevant as farmers manage rising input costs, water availability and the long-term productivity of their land.

Wani’s goal is not to change labels without changing agricultural thinking. He wants farmers to understand their soil, know what their crops require and make informed decisions, rather than choosing or abandoning inputs out of habit.

TMW Organic Products: A Range Built Around Different Farm Needs

This thinking shapes the work at TMW Eco Organic & Bio Fertilizers. Through its TMW Organic Products range, the company aims to make organic agricultural inputs more accessible to farmers and to encourage greater attention to soil management. The range has developed around different agricultural needs rather than the belief that a single input can solve every problem.

TMW SoilCare Vermicompost reflects the company’s focus on organic matter and soil improvement. Properly produced vermicompost can improve soil structure, moisture retention and biological activity, depending on the soil and application conditions.

TMW SoilPhos PROM (Phosphate-Rich Organic Manure) supports phosphorus nutrition through a combination of rock phosphate, organic matter and phosphate-solubilizing bacteria, giving farmers another option within a balanced nutrient-management program.

TMW Potash, a potassium-rich agricultural input derived from molasses, is being evaluated as part of the company’s efforts to develop organic-origin potassium nutrition. Its suitability will be assessed against the product’s declared nutrient composition and the specific requirements of the crop in question.

TMW FOM (Fermented Organic Manure) extends the range into granular, powder and liquid forms, offering different formats for suitable agricultural applications.

Each product has its own purpose, specifications and recommended method of use. Farmers are encouraged to select products according to their crop, soil conditions and nutrient requirements, with appropriate technical guidance.

Turning Agricultural Waste into Organic Resources

One lesson Wani highlights from the company’s work is that materials often seen as agricultural waste can become valuable resources. When managed correctly, paddy straw, cow dung and other suitable biodegradable materials can be processed into useful organic inputs, linking agricultural waste management with organic manure production.

He stresses that the process must follow responsible practices. Materials must undergo appropriate treatment, the final product must comply with relevant quality and safety standards, and not every waste material is suitable for every agricultural application. Better waste management, responsible composting and the use of suitable organic inputs, he believes, can help build a more resource-conscious agricultural economy in India.

A Long-Term View of Indian Agriculture

For Wani, the future of agriculture is about more than next season’s sales or the next harvest. It is about the farmers who will cultivate the same land after us and the children who will inherit the consequences of today’s decisions. They will need productive farms, dependable water resources and an agricultural system that can meet future challenges.

He is candid about the limits of organic manure. It cannot promise to deliver all these outcomes alone, and farmers cannot be expected to change their practices overnight without support or risk to their livelihoods. What can be done, he says, is to encourage better soil management, improve access to suitable organic products, promote scientific guidance and make soil health a bigger part of everyday farming decisions.

He also wants organic inputs to be judged on their quality and performance, not on the promises printed on their packaging, and he wants the conversation about agriculture to extend beyond what we take from the land to what we return to it.

A Personal Commitment to India’s Agricultural Future

Wani’s journey towards organic agriculture began with a question about soil and has grown into a wider commitment to the farmers whose work sustains the country. Through TMW SoilCare, TMW SoilPhos, TMW Potash and TMW FOM, the company aims to contribute to a more balanced approach to agricultural nutrition and soil management.

He acknowledges there is still much to learn, and that meaningful change will need cooperation among farmers, agricultural scientists, institutions, businesses and policymakers. Progress, he believes, should come through knowledge, responsible products, practical experience and a willingness to improve.

“We cannot change the future of Indian agriculture in a day,” Wani says. “But we can begin by changing the questions we ask about the soil.”

To learn more about the company and its range of organic and biofertilizer products, visit TMW Eco Organic & Bio Fertilizers, or read more about the founder at tahirmaqsood.com.