kafsimo-coffee ground recycling system by incommon

kafsimo

from coffee waste

Kafsimo shows us how we can turn coffee waste into something new.

Our energy becomes energy for the planet!

Every day we all get our energy from coffee and then… we throw its residue in the trash. It happens everywhere, in our homes, offices, coffee shops and restaurants.
Six years after its launch in 2020, project kafsimo is coming full circle and looking to start a new chapter. Through collaboration with residents, cafés, and local organizations, we have collected thousands of kilograms of used coffee grounds from espresso, Greek, and French coffee, “saving” them from landfills and repurposing them as natural fertilizer, pellets, or biogas.

At this time, the established collection points in Thessaloniki and the mobile collection using our electric van have been suspended, while we are exploring ways to continue collecting organic waste, possibly through the brown bin, provided we can reach an agreement with the municipal authorities.

What is not being suspended is the idea, the methodology, and the knowledge we have built. Our conviction remains the same: coffee can be the starting point for a shift in mindset regarding the proper management of organic waste.

What do we do in kafsimo?

coffee waste collection

We started in 2020 with our electric van, activating several neighborhoods by collecting coffee grounds from cafes and households. To date, kafsimo has saved tonnes of coffee waste in Thessaloniki and Kilkis, Petralona, Papagos-Cholargos, Karditsa, and Larissa. These actions were in effect for a certain period of time, depending on the region.

fixed collection spots

We have developed a system of fixed collection points throughout Thessaloniki: Kyklos, the workshop of incommon, 105 Agia Sofia Street, Ano Poli • University of Macedonia, 156 Egnatia Street (lobby) • Cosmus DIY, 6 Baltadorou • Vardaris Neighborhood Group, 19 Odysseos (arcade) • Thessaloniki City Hall, Vasileos Georgiou Ave. A1 (ground floor) • Ok Thess, 2 Komotini Street • Isea, 12 Kritis Street. These locations will be suspended starting January 1, 2026, due to vehicle breakdown.

staff training through practice

While the distinctive kafsimo collection bins are handed to cafés empty and return full of clean coffee waste, baristas and citizens who engage in separation at source are forming a new, environmentally sound habit.

ensuring local utilization of residues

Through our collaboration with ESEK - a local energy community in Karditsa - the coffee residue is turned into biomass pellets which heat a kindergarten and a few households. In Kilkis, the coffee waste was composted together with wheat cultivation residue (from Staramaki Social Coop) to fall back on the fields as a soil enhancer. In Thessaloniki it is converted into bioenergy at a local biogas plant.

actions to inform & activate citizens

We meet citizens, where they live and work, wherever they have their coffee and there is residue that can be used. In awareness-raising activities at farmers markets, at squares, in festivals. We discuss and come up with ways so that no coffee bean ends up in the landfill.

...and what you can do

as a BUSINESS

Request a brown bin from your municipality! According to Law 4819/21, municipalities are obliged to expand the collection of bio-waste, meaning food scraps, using brown bins. Food and beverage businesses must also use them! This way, tons of espresso, Greek, and French coffee grounds don’t end up in landfills but are turned into valuable compost. Having more ideas or requests about the use of your business coffee grounds, please contact us through info@incommon.gr

Find a sample letter (in GR)

as a CITIZEN

Return to nature the energy you got from Your coffee! Collect the coffee grounds from your espresso, Greek or French coffee in a bottle and use them as a natural fertilizer for your plants. You can also request a small brown bin from your Municipality’s Sanitation and Recycling Department — it’s free and you’re entitled to it! Use it to collect your coffee waste and then dispose it in the big brown bin placed at your neighborhood.

Collection instructions (in GR)

as a MUNICIPALITY

This is for you, if you're a Sanitation and Recycling Officer in a Municipality looking for ideas and awareness-raising actions about the brown bin in every neighborhood! Check out incommon's related projects for citizen engagement guides — or get in touch with us directly! And don’t forget: the coffee grounds we produce daily — even in municipal buildings — are a valuable organic waste that can be put to good use for the sake of the environment!

as a SCHOOL

Are you a student or educator interested in doing something good for the environment? Collect coffee grounds from cafes around your school or from canteens and offices, and depending on the collection capacity of your neighborhood, bring the residue to one of the fixed collection spots, compost it or put it in the coffee bin. Initiate a discussion in your class and give a lesson of active citizenship yourself!

Read the guide of EPI (p.211)

Measuring kafsimo’s impact in cups

Everything we do has a footprint.
Through LCA tools (Life Cycle Analysis) we examine the entire life cycle of coffee in terms of its environmental impact.

Through kafsimo, with every ton of coffee residue we collect and utilize, we save 4.5 tons of carbon dioxide equivalents from the landfill!

Coffee, the ideal start

used coffee grounds (SCG) are:

a daily habit for almost everyone
a clean organic waste that is not collected separately
potential raw material
the means to create a successful waste management model

Would you like to financially support this project? Contact us!

What you said about kafsimo

"Separating the coffee waste has become second nature to me"

"I appreciate that my effort does not go to waste"

"I don't want to throw coffee into the bin anymore. I'm keeping all spent coffee grounds waiting for the next collection day"

Participating cafe, Thessaloniki

"How can you forget coffee recycling?"

Barista, Green Room TiFF

"It is a very important part of the process to see the kafsimo collection bin. When we have it next to the counter, we don't forget about coffee recycling"