Ground coffee: what makes a drink makes a jewel

Every Brazilian uses almost 5kg of coffee powder every year. What to do with this residue? In some places it becomes fertilizer, in cities the dust usually goes to the trash. Know, however, that you may have a treasure in your hands.

That’s right, the old ground coffee from every day is now the source of furniture and even jewelry. Do you want to know how this is possible? Find here at Eat Innovation.

Jewelry designer Rosalie McMillan joined the startup London Re-Worked to create the Çurface (that’s right, with Ç), a material made from ground coffee, melted plastic from disposable cups and natural oils. The result is a kind of “dark wood” of high added value.

To make the Çurface, this mixture of coffee goes through high temperature and pressure processing. The raw material comes from the partnership that the startup has with cafeterias that donate their ground coffee waste. The material has high durability and resistance as well as a common wood. The designer uses it to make unique jewelry with gold and silver.

Coffee-based jewelery

Joint work with manufacturers took çurface to be used in furniture and espresso machines. However, despite having developed an innovative material, Re-Worked still depends on governmental research funds to continue exploring the new material. They need to grow and produce it on a large scale and the company is studying ways to make this economic and environmentally sustainable while maintaining their core values.

Coffee-based furniture

Will the Çurface conquer the world? This we do not know yet, but for sure I want to use these coffee jewels. So, do you want a cup of coffee now?

References: The Guardian, Mapped Culture, Fine Dining Lovers, Death Wish Coffee, Embrapa