The ECOFFEE initiative, supported through the European Union's Horizon Europe program within the CIRCULOOS ecosystem, recently hosted a workshop addressing Coffee recycling and the circular economy. The event drew approximately 54 attendees in-person and 33 participating online, uniting nearly 100 industry professionals focused on waste reduction strategies.
David San Martín, Senior Researcher at AZTI, outlined the technical pathway for repurposing thousands of tons of annually generated coffee grounds. According to San Martín, the initiative's approach centers on overcoming five primary obstacles:
- Smart logistics for waste collection from hospitality sectors and vending machines, with compliance to End-of-Waste regulations
- Precision decapsulation systems separating coffee from plastic and aluminum components
- Thermal stabilization through moisture reduction below 10%
- Sustainable animal nutrition trials with dairy sheep and cattle, potentially reducing methane emissions
- Natural biocide development using micro-dispersion technology for crop protection
The project operates with a budget of €256,451.25 and represents collaboration among AZTI (coordinating organization), Euskovazza, FumiHogar, and the Finnova Foundation. Funded under Grant Agreement No. 101092295 from the European Union.