About this project
Organisation
Grounds Up
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A completely closed coffee circle, that's what Grounds Up is going for. The start-up from Temse reprocesses coffee grounds into reusable raw materials and that even in collaboration
On average, Belgians drink 800 cups of coffee per person, per year. That accounts for about 67,000 tons of coffee grounds. Processing one kilogram of coffee grounds as waste generates 775 grams of CO2 emissions. That means that in Belgium, just by drinking coffee, we emit 52 million CO2 per year.
All that coffee grounds that usually just end up in the trash can be put to much better use, according to Grounds Up. The start-up specializes in upcycling the black goo. Their process converts coffee grounds into coffee oil - a more sustainable alternative to palm oil - and coffee press cake. The latter serves as raw material for coffee biocomposite, which can be used to make coffee cups, for example.
Together with IKEA
In 2024, the start-up launched its own reusable coffee cup, the NeRoo cup, made from coffee grounds from the furniture giant, in collaboration with IKEA. Meanwhile, the two have entered into a structural partnership. Grounds Up now processes the coffee grounds from eight Belgian IKEA stores. In total, this amounts to about 46 tons per year! Waste company Renewi collects the grit from the stores and delivers it to Grounds Up. The entire operation avoids more than 35,000 kg of CO2 emissions annually, according to IKEA.
