UPCYCLING COFFEE GROUNDS

VOLUME 35 ISSUE 2

Breaking new
grounds
for coffee
It should come as no surprise George May and Jessica Folkerts of bio-bean to do their part to reduce food
that food waste is a big, global waste[5], and in 2019 more than
problem and it is passed time
explain how spent coffee grounds have moved half (57%) of consumers were
to do something about it. The from a food waste problem to become a aiming to buy more food and
world’s food waste accounts for valuable resource and raw material. beverages made with upcycled
8% of our total global greenhouse ingredients in the next year[6].
gas emissions (GHG)[1]; if food With investors showing
waste were a country, it would increasing interest in upcycled
be the third highest emitter of food concepts [7], the Upcycled
GHG[2]. According to Project Food Association recently
Drawdown, reducing food waste announced a formal definition
is the single most effective of the term, specific to food; the
solution to climate change[3]. them into potassium packed Association’s logo is beginning
Thankfully, there are several snacks. Toast Ale brews award- to appear on consumer goods,
innovative movements to winning craft beers from suggesting that the trend is set to
address the staggering 30% surplus fresh bread rather than continue.
of all food produced globally virgin barley. WTRMLN WTR
going to waste[4]. From creative turns aesthetically rejected Spent coffee grounds as a
distribution and sharing, to watermelons into refreshing, food waste
upcycling and circular models, cold-pressed, natural juices, The world’s population drinks
there are many opportunities to while Rubies in the Rubble makes over 2.25bn cups of coffee every
make a positive choice quickly delicious condiments from day. With an estimated average
and simply for sustainable, scaled surplus ingredients that would of 11g of fresh ground coffee
impact. From peels and past-its- otherwise go to waste. going into each cup, a staggering
prime fruit, more manufacturers Underpinning this upcycling 9m tonnes of ground coffee are
are getting creative, and more trend in food and beverage brewed every year, resulting
upcycled food start-ups are ingredients is the demanding in an estimated 18m tonnes
beginning to appear on the scene. and discerning consumer. In fact, of wet, spent coffee grounds
Barnana upcycles organic according to Mattson, a food as a by-product. Typically, this
bananas that are too ‘ugly’ innovation and development by-product is treated as a waste
for retail sales, transforming firm, 95% of consumers want and sent to landfill or directed

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FOOD SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY UPCYCLING COFFEE GROUNDS

methane (a greenhouse gas 25 coffee grounds are wet, and

times more potent than carbon therefore an inefficient fuel. More
dioxide over a 100-year period) importantly, incineration does
and other harmful greenhouse not consider the residual value of
gases, contributing to the the material and precludes any
to other sub-optimal disposal congestion in our atmosphere options for recycling or reuse.
methods for spent grounds. But and the warming of the planet. If
what if instead we could reduce If all the estimated all the estimated 18m tonnes of Recovering spent coffee
this coffee waste by harnessing wet, spent grounds were left to grounds
its residual value and feeding it
18m tonnes of wet, decompose naturally, they would Bio-bean recovers and recycles
back into a circular economy? spent grounds were release over 2.3bn cubic metres spent coffee grounds, processing
Bio-bean has established a way left to decompose of methane annually – a global and upcycling them into a range
to collect spent coffee grounds warming impact equivalent to of sustainable bio-products
and upcycle them into a valuable naturally, they would the entire annual CO2 output of for use across a variety of
raw material, which can then release over 2.3bn France. industries, both consumer and
be used to manufacture a range There are other disposal industrial. This enables greater
of sustainable bio-products. By
cubic metres of options, like anaerobic digestion resource extraction from a
diverting spent grounds away methane annually (AD) and incineration. But coffee material previously considered
from conventional disposal – a global warming contains thousands of trace level to be waste. With the capacity to
methods, waste and subsequent volatile organic compounds, process around 16,000 tonnes
greenhouse gas emissions are impact equivalent to including pyridines, which of spent grounds annually, we
reduced. Upcycling the grounds the entire annual CO2 have been shown to inhibit are able to save approximately
into bio-based products for both biomethane production in AD. seven tonnes of CO2e emissions
industrial use and for consumers
output of France. As a result, and with greater every year compared to alternate
means that every ounce of useful awareness of organics recycling disposal methods.
resource is being recovered from and available feedstocks, many Spent coffee grounds lend
this material that was once AD plants prefer not to accept themselves to being processed
considered waste. spent coffee grounds. as a separate raw material
If sent to landfill, spent Many businesses choose feedstock into a range of value-
coffee grounds – like every other incineration as a waste disposal adding bio-products. They are a
organic waste material – emit method. But unrecycled spent naturally clean by-product of the

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UPCYCLING COFFEE GROUNDS VOLUME 35 ISSUE 2

brewing process, segregated at Analysis of spent

source by baristas and bean-to- grounds, above.
cup machines, and are readily
identifiable. Coffee biomass
The spent grounds are pellets for heating
collected from UK businesses of fuel, above right.
every scale: from coffee shops,
office blocks and restaurants,
to airports, universities, rail
stations and instant coffee
manufacturers. Working with
the existing logistics and waste
management infrastructure,
spent grounds are collected
through various models
depending on the volumes
produced and the business’s
location and operational
resources. These methods
include backhauling or via
daily collections along with, yet
segregated from, general waste.
There are two streams of
supply: one certified food-grade
stream collected from a single
source (a national coffee shop
chain) via a backhaul model of Natural coffee drinks. In fact, over 800 volatile been wastefully and needlessly
collection and a second stream flavour compounds are responsible for discarded.
aggregated from all other coffee’s complex and instantly By extracting coffee’s original,
recycling partners. The first recognisable aroma (both flavour natural and non-depleted
stream makes sure the grounds and fragrance). These flavour and chemical compounds from spent
remain within the food chain and The spent grounds fragrance compounds, combined grounds, the residual value
certifies kosher and halal status. with oils, caffeine, and a range within this by-product can be
This enables bio-bean to extract are collected from UK of other beneficial compounds introduced back into the supply
the remaining volatile aroma businesses of every (such as antioxidants) naturally chain, contributing to the circular
compounds from these grounds present within the beans, make economy and sustainably reusing
to create a natural coffee flavour scale: from coffee coffee a rich source of functional a valuable resource.
for use as an ingredient in food shops, office blocks components.
and beverage formulation. and restaurants, to While brewing coffee Natural flavour ingredient
grounds exhausts many of these The residual volatile aroma
Residual value of spent airports, universities, functional compound groups, a compounds found in fresh
coffee grounds rail stations and instant significant percentage of a few coffee are extracted to produce
The process of roasting green key groups of residual volatile an ingredient with high
coffee beans generates hundreds coffee manufacturers. aroma and other compounds concentrations of natural
of volatile chemical compounds remain. In other words, there pyrazines, bringing roasted,
responsible for the unmistakable is still significant value in nutty and smoked notes when
flavour and aroma of one spent coffee grounds, which utilised in flavour applications.
of the world’s favourite hot until recently had most often The pyrazines provide a unique

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FOOD SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY UPCYCLING COFFEE GROUNDS

flavour profile and composition textiles and printing inks, spent Coffee logs for fuel than kiln-dried wood logs. Both
which widens the scope of coffee grounds are a versatile the coffee pellets and Coffee Logs
potential product applications raw material for a range of are sustainable fuel alternatives,
to a range of sweet and savoury, industries, and they allow the which avoid the heavy carbon
coffee- and non-coffee-related displacement of conventional footprint of conventional fossil
formulations, including alcoholic virgin or synthetic carbon-heavy fuels or mass imported wood and
spirits, ready-to-drink beverages, resources. pellets.
dairy-based products and For example, spent coffee
chocolates. grounds have thus far been Food waste as a solution
incorporated successfully Spent coffee grounds are
Raw material for plastics, into biobased, compostable anything but waste. Rather, their
packaging and more as well as recycled polymers, inherent breadth of potential
Following the extraction of the including PE (polyethylene), serves as demonstrative proof
residual valuable compounds to PP (polypropylene), PETG that food ‘waste’ materials need
create a flavour ingredient, the (polyethylene terephthalate not be wasted. There is nothing
solid grounds remain. These solids glycol), PS (polystyrene) and ABS within nature that goes to waste -
are added to a second feedstock (acrylonitrile butadiene styrene) The spent grounds everything is recycled and reused.
supply stream (aggregated from and in an array of colours. In this are also used as the This is a circular model that has
all other recycling partners) to application area, spent grounds primary ingredient worked for centuries, so why
be processed and upcycled into can currently displace up to 30% reinvent the wheel?
a bulk, raw material for other of the original virgin or synthetic, within solid biomass Food waste need not be a
product innovations to maximise and often petroleum-based, heating fuels, problem - it can be the solution.
the use of this significant material. We just need to look for the
resource. The range of potential particularly coffee possibilities (often right under
When spent grounds arrive applications is vast and the biomass pellets and our noses), to be creative and
at bio-bean’s Cambridgeshire technology is still breaking new fire logs. inventive, and avoid jumping
factory, they are put through a ground in response to the push to to past reliance on virgin and
decontamination process before build back greener in the wake of synthetic options that very
drying to pre-set moisture levels. the pandemic. often have a sizeable negative
With the ability to process to environmental footprint.
bespoke specifications, the Solid biomass heating fuel As Mahatma Gandhi so
product can be further refined The spent grounds are also wisely declared, waste is merely a
to meet the specific demands used as the primary ingredient resource in the wrong place.
of a particular customer. The within solid biomass heating
technology guarantees a uniform fuels, particularly coffee biomass References and article
product, meaning a consistent pellets and fire logs. The coffee available online at
particle size and bulk density. pellets are for use in large onlinelibrary.wiley.com/
Rising consumer demand commercial and industrial-scale doi/10.1002/fsat.3502_8.x
for sustainable products and biomass boilers, primarily for
packaging, accelerated by the heating commercial green houses. George May, Managing
Director and Jessica Folkerts,
climate emergency, is fuelling The fire logs, known as Coffee Head of Marketing, bio-bean
product innovation with an Logs, are a consumer retail Limited
accompanying flow of new winter solid fuel brand for use
products using spent coffee in wood-burning and multi-fuel Telephone 020 3744 6500
grounds as a core ingredient stoves. Due to coffee’s naturally Web bio-bean.com
coming to market. From high calorific value, the logs
bioplastics, packaging and make good use of that natural Email [email protected]
automotive friction to cosmetics, heating power, burning hotter

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