Awareness of food waste is increasing as we try everything we can to cut emissions and save our planet. There is even a Stop Food Awareness Day which happens to be today, the 27th of April. We thought we would take this opportunity to look at how we can help you can do your bit by recycling or reusing your used coffee grounds.
Not only can used coffee grounds be recycled into carbon-neutral fuels, but they can also be used around the home and office on a smaller scale. For those interested in recycling their office coffee grounds, we will discuss our collection service a bit later on. For now, let’s take a look at a few tips for around the home and the smaller office. After making your perfect cup of coffee, whether that is with a cafetiere or an office coffee machine, here’s what you can do with your grounds.
Use as Fertiliser.
If you struggle to keep your plants alive then this is good news for you. You may not know but used coffee grounds make great fertiliser. Just add them to the soil and give your plants that extra bit of nourishment. Coffee grounds contain key nutrients that help your plants to thrive including nitrogen, calcium, potassium, iron, phosphorus, magnesium and chromium.
If you have enough, you can even spread them around your plants in the garden and become the envy of the neighbourhood. They also attract worms which are gardener’s friends.
Too many to use now? Add them to your composing for later on.
Use Them to Repel Insects
Caffeine and diterpenes, 2 key components of coffee, are actually toxic to insects. They make a great deterrent for mosquitos, fruit flies and beetles and can help you keep other bugs and insects away.
By sprinkling them around your plants, you will also keep away the slugs and snails. Healthy plants, no insects!
Use Them to Remove Fleas From Cats and Dogs
Like mosquitos and flies, fleas do not like coffee either. By rubbing coffee grounds into your pet’s fur after shampooing and rinsing, you help to repel fleas. Be careful that your pet doesn’t ingest any of the coffee though. Rinse them thoroughly!
Use Them as a Cleaning Product
Looking for natural ways to clean? Try coffee grounds as a scrub. Their abrasive properties mean that they can help remove build-up on surfaces and also sanitise with their antibacterial properties.
Try them on your sink, your cooker or your grill however, be careful not to use them on delicate surfaces as they may scratch. Why not get out those old pots and pans and use your used coffee grounds to bring them back to life?
Use it to Neutralise Odours
Nitrogen, combined with carbon can help to remove mould odours from the air. This means that coffee grounds, which contain nitrogen, are great at getting rid of bad smells.
Place a bowl of coffee grounds in your fridge or freezer to get rid of the odours from gone off foods.
Fill old socks with coffee grounds and tie them to make your very own air fresheners. You can then use these in your shoes, your sports bag, bedroom or any other areas that tend to need deodorising.
Scrubbing your hands with them after handling onions or garlic will also help to get rid of the smell.
Use Them as Part of Your Beauty Regime
Now, there are a few ways in which you can incorporate coffee grounds into your skincare regime. Before you turn your nose up at this, consider the smell of cocoa butter – it’s not dissimilar to that of coffee and as long as you rinse it off thoroughly, you won’t need to walk around all day smelling coffee.
- Exfoliate Your Skin.
- Reduce the Appearance of Cellulite
- Treat Circles Under the Eyes
We have already mentioned that coffee has abrasive properties so why not mix your used coffee grounds with a little water and coconut oil and use as a facial and body scrub? Excellent for getting rid of dead skin cells and dirt.
The caffeine in the grounds is also great for protecting the skin from the sun and contains antioxidants. It comes as no surprise that the caffeine removed from decaf coffee is sold to skincare companies and added to their creams.
When combined with water and coconut oil as a scrub and applied for ten minutes, regular (twice a week), topical application can help to break down the fat, increase blood flow to the area and reduce the appearance of cellulite.
Doe to the high antioxidant properties of coffee, using them under the eyes can help to revitalise and reduce under-eye circles while helping to prevent the signs of ageing.
Other Uses of Coffee Grounds
Now we could go on and on with lots of useful tips but here are a few more in brief:
- Grow mushrooms – yes really
- Use it as a Natural Dye
- Clean your fireplace – use the coffee grounds to weigh down the ashes to stop them from flying around
- Tenderise meat – not only helps to tenderise it, also adds flavour
- Stimulate hair growth – you may have seen ads for caffeine shampoos
- Repair scratches in furniture
So… next time you think about chucking those used coffee grounds away, consider what else you can do with them and help to reduce coffee waste.
And if You Run a Business?
At the Office Coffee Company, we work with First Mile and Bio-Bean (the world’s largest coffee grounds recycling company) to collect your used coffee grounds and take them away. They then transform your used grounds into carbon-neutral fuels.
Every little measure counts - your dedication to sustainability helps make lasting change and boosts employee morale.
Interested in recycling your office coffee, get in touch with us today. Click here.
