SPILL THE BEANS: Is it possible to make clothes from waste coffee grounds?
Fast fashion has resulted in a loss of important values and workers and the environment have both suffered as a result of cheap clothing production over the last few years. It has become increasingly popular to wear ethical clothing, and sustainable ways to produce fabric are in demand.
First developed by a Taiwanese company in 2008, the use of coffee grounds to make clothes has been on the rise ever since. The fabric produced has a number of benefits, especially for activewear and gym clothing. It is fast-drying, sweat-wicking, and de-odorising, all benefits which are hugely important for performance clothing.
How do recycled coffee grounds become clothing?
The fabric is made from the waste product that is created when making coffee. The used coffee grounds usually just end up in a landfill, so this recycling process is truly ethical and responsible. The coffee grounds are processed in a low-temperature, high-pressured environment to make them into yarn which is then woven into naturally high-tech fabric.
Sport also adopts new trends, following new technologies to make it more environmental-friendly
Football kits made from coffee grounds:
World’s greenest football club Forest Green Rovers has unveiled its latest prototype kit from made from waste coffee grounds and recycled plastic.
Owned by Dale Vince, the club is making its efforts to investigate new fabrics since unveiling the world’s first bamboo kit some years ago.
The coffee-based fabric has been top performer in initial tests and has been found to be lighter, breathable and more durable than its current Bamboo kit.
Only three cups of bean and five plastic bottles are needed
Not only this kit is lighter but it is also eye-catching. Playing in shirts consisting of three cups of bean waste and five plastic bottles could give Forest Green’s players a competitive edge as lab tests have shown them to be lighter and more breathable.
The default for modern sports kit had become 100 percent plastic which didn’t make much sense from an environment perspective or a performance perspective.
Final thoughts
Coffee grounds are a highly advantageous material for making clothes, and their use will open the way for more innovations of this nature to benefit quality, sustainability, and the environment.
If you have any comments about fabric made with coffee grounds, feel free to leave them below.
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