In Denmark, design company Mater is expanding its offering of furniture manufactured from wood fibers and spent coffee grounds mixed with sugarcane-based plastic. The new Alder collection is completely biodegradable except for its recycled steel frame and was designed in collaboration with architect and designer Patricia Urquiola. “Biodegradable plastic, in this case sugar cane, is […]
In Minnesota, a two-year partnership between IMA Coffee and polylactic acid producer NatureWorks has resulted in the development of a compostable coffee pod. Unveiled at the recent AMI Single-Serve Capsules conference in Boston, the pod features a rigid capsule body, filter, and lidding made from Ingeo™️ PLA biopolymer. Every IMA Coffee pod filling and sealing […]
In South Korea, Samsung Electronics product designer Hwan Ju Jeon has created a prototype printer that uses used coffee grounds as ink. While soy-based inks exist as an alternative to conventional, petroleum-based printer inks, the RITI coffee printer concept envisions using material that would otherwise be household trash. “Perhaps the most exciting aspect of this […]
In Switzerland, a startup using cell culture technology to produce cacao and coffee has raised CHF 5 million ($5.6 million) in a seed round. Founded in 2021, Food Brewer aims to use advanced techniques to produce commodities that are currently challenged by land scarcity, climate, and ethical concerns. Vegconomist reports that investors included family offices […]
In Florida, X-BATT has made a breakthrough in lithium-ion battery technology with the introduction of a composite anode materials made from feedstocks like wood, corn husk, rice husk, and spent coffee grounds. By leveraging agricultural waste products as a low-cost carbon source, X-BATT aims to address the critical mineral shortage threatening the electrification movement by […]
In Israel, TIPA, a manufacturer of high-performance compostable materials, and packaging company ATI have introduced lids for compostable coffee capsules. Suitable for all capsules, including Nespresso machines, the high-barrier laminate addresses problems other compostable coffee capsules have experienced such as delamination, poor sealing, and material ending up in the coffee. They are also certified by […]
In Denmark, a bioscience company dedicated to upcycling coffee waste has opened its first biorefinery. Kaffe Bueno’s newly inaugurated facility at Rodovre can upcycle 500 tons of coffee grounds annually. The company’s technology converts the proteins, antioxidants and fats that remain in coffee grounds into personal care ingredients, oils, and fibers. The company tells Beverage […]
In Minnesota, a new study conducted by Netherlands-based Wageningen Food & Biobased Research, a part of Wageningen University & Research (WUR), revealed that coffee capsules made with Ingeo PLA biopolymer from NatureWorks outperform aluminum, conventional plastics, and other compostable capsules when it comes to sustainability performance. The independent study assessed the environmental impact and circularity […]
In Australia, a team at RMIT University hopes mixing coffee grounds with concrete will reduce the amount of sand mined for concrete production while simultaneously divert coffee waste from landfills. “Our research group was discussing shifting our focus to divert this waste from landfills and develop innovative solutions to transforming this waste into a valuable […]
In Bristol, England, zero-waste shop Zero Green is using edible coffee cups from Cupffee so it can more closely live up to its name. Based in Bulgaria, Cupffee produces the plastic cup alternative from wheat and barley. The low-calorie cups can hold a drink—hot or cold—for 40 minutes and either be eaten or composted following […]
