Our History

Our roots date back to the 1950s when in 1953 the enterprising Don Emilio Zayco opened a quarry in the mountains of Negros. When our business began the focus was on supplying agricultural lime for the Philippine's emerging sugar industry. Since those post-war growth years of the Philippines, the Southern Negros-based, family-owned quarrying operation, Upward Agro Industrial, has grown into a national presence in the Limestone and Lime products industry. Upward Agro developed from a quarry supplying limestone to become a leading manufacturer in the industry.

Ours is the story of a great adventure, of the pioneering spirit. The story of entrepreneurship, resourcefulness and ingenuity. More than half a century of work, passion and commitment contributed to making Upward Agro a Negrense industry leader.

Our business has been growing steadily, both in sales and profit, over the past 5 years. A business carried out by passionate people making the most of a vital resource. Today we are a major producer of Lime in the Philippines. We continue to seek new opportunities and grow our business. With a focus on existing and emerging customer needs, we also invest in new facilities and the development of our portfolio of innovative products and solutions.

Lime production on Negros Island was almost entirely used for sugar milling in the 1960s. With the industrialization of the Philippine economy and the growth of new industries lime became essential in the mining, steel, paper, water treatment and other sectors. From a small father-and-son enterprise in the mountains of Negros, Upward Agro Industrial Corporation has since grown to be one of the leading lime manufacturers in the Philippines. The enterprise became incorporated on July 30, 1986.

The Company today supplies quality lime products across the Philippines and employs over a hundred people. Lime is widely used as filtering aids in production process and pH regulator in waste water treatment in various key industries including steel, chemical, sugar, mining, pulp and paper, etc. Calcium Carbonate is primarily used as filler and extender to reduce cost of production.