Coffee Grounds Reborn as Benches

Coffee Grounds (Coffee Residue) Transform into Various Eco-Friendly Products Including Compost, Deodorizer, Benches, and Wood Chips
Gangbuk-gu, Gwangjin-gu, Jungnang-gu, Yangcheon-gu Produce Recycled Coffee Grounds Compost, Deodorizer, and Eco-Friendly Benches

Guui Park Coffee Grounds Bench, Gwangjin-gu

Coffee grounds are even being made into benches.

'Coffee grounds,' the coffee residue produced in tens of thousands of tons daily from coffee shops nationwide, are being recycled into various eco-friendly products such as compost, deodorants, and benches.

'Coffee grounds' are byproducts left after making coffee. Approximately 15g of coffee beans are used to make one cup of Americano, and about 99% of these beans end up as coffee grounds waste.

Accordingly, many autonomous districts such as Gangbuk-gu, Jungnang-gu, Gwangjin-gu, and Yangcheon-gu in Seoul collect coffee grounds and recycle them into various eco-friendly materials.

Gangbuk-gu (District Mayor Lee Soon-hee) is promoting the 'Coffee Grounds Recycling Project,' which recycles coffee grounds into eco-friendly compost.

Coffee grounds have a high calorific value and can be recycled as biofuel or compost; however, they are currently classified as household waste under the Waste Management Act and are disposed of accordingly.

Therefore, the district announced that it will implement the 'Coffee Grounds Recycling Project' targeting 284 coffee shops in the area to reduce the amount of household waste generated from coffee grounds and cut disposal costs.

Jungnang-gu (District Mayor Ryu Kyung-gi) operates the 'Coffee Grounds Upcycling Team' through the Jungnang Senior Club as a senior employment project, producing deodorants using coffee grounds. The deodorants produced are distributed free of charge to vulnerable groups and local residents. Notably, in May, about 1,500 deodorants were produced and delivered to seniors at local welfare centers.

Gwangjin-gu (District Mayor Kim Kyung-ho) installed eco-friendly benches recycled from coffee grounds.

Each 'coffee grounds bench' reuses coffee grounds generated from brewing 2,100 cups of coffee, reducing 11kg of carbon emissions that would have been produced if the grounds were incinerated as household waste.

This bench installation is the result of the 'Coffee Grounds Resource Recycling Project' initiated in 2022, aimed at reducing waste and promoting resource recycling while providing residents with comfortable and sustainable resting spaces.

The district previously collected coffee grounds from coffee shops to make feed or fertilizer, but this time, they synthesized coffee decks by mixing more than 50% coffee grounds with wood powder, creating sturdy and durable benches. The benches, donated by the 'Social Cooperative Resources and Circulation,' were installed in high-demand locations such as ▲Achasan Eoullim Square and ▲Guui Park. Kim Kyung-ho, Mayor of Gwangjin-gu, said, “By recycling everyday waste like coffee grounds, we have achieved both environmental protection and urban aesthetics improvement. We will continue to make active efforts for resource circulation.”

Additionally, Yangcheon-gu (District Mayor Lee Ki-jae) has arranged for Cheonil Energy to collect all coffee grounds and, after reprocessing, produce eco-friendly wood chips as an alternative to fossil fuels.