MOST OF COFFEE WASTE IS COMPOSTABLE, RECYCLABLE OR RESUABLE
Check with your municipality or the Recycling Council of BC (rcbc.ca) to see how to best dispose of each component.
- Coffee Bags
If your coffee of choice is packaging in plastic pouch, no need to worry – RecycleBC has a spot for those. This type of material is collected with Flexible Plastics at Recycle BC depots or London Drugs.
- Coffee Grounds
Good coffee beans are expensive, so you might as well use them for more than just a cup of coffee. There are lots of other ways to use coffee beyond just enjoying a cup and disposing the coffee grounds down the sink, which isn’t a very good idea, by the way.
Far and away, the most popular use for used coffee grounds is to add them to your garden, where they provide multiple benefits. They add vital nutrients like nitrogen and potassium to the soil, help absorb heavy metals, and attract earthworms.
But if you don’t have a garden, you aren’t out of luck. There are plenty of creative uses for used coffee grounds.
For example, bowls of coffee grounds can control odors or act as a natural insect repellent. Another everyday use is a body scrub, often mixed with other kitchen staples like honey and oatmeal. The coarse coffee grounds are exfoliating, while the residual caffeine perks up your skin. In the same vein, coffee grounds can be used as a household scrub for cleaning sinks, showers, and stubborn pots and pans.