Shift in coffee bean land

What might be our greatest challenge as a society in the coming years? The transition to a circular economy. Why? Because it requires a radically different way of dealing with raw materials and waste. That's why rotterzwam is introducing "Coffee as a Service." A concept in which the supplier retains ownership of the coffee bean—even after it's been turned into coffee grounds. Coffee grounds are too valuable to burn in a waste incinerator.

For the past five years, Rotterzwam has been active at the end of the coffee chain. At BlueCity in Rotterdam, they grow mushrooms on coffee grounds. A lot of coffee grounds still end up in residual waste, which is often then incinerated. "It's a waste of such a precious commodity as coffee grounds," says Mark Slegers of Rotterzwam.

Owner of the coffee bean

To accelerate the transition to the circular economy, rotterzwam will also sell coffee beans—but as a service instead of a product. In other words, rotterzwam retains ownership of the coffee bean. The coffee grounds are collected, and coffee drinkers receive a customized impact report and a selection of products made from the coffee grounds.

Slegers explains enthusiastically: "It's actually a logical next step for us. By supplying the coffee ourselves and retaining ownership of the beans, we now determine what happens to the coffee grounds. The great thing is that we have many high-quality applications that are better than incineration. Besides growing fungi, we make bioplastics and use coffee grounds to enrich agricultural land. And we continue to research new applications."

To collaborate
Rotterzwam believes in collaboration. For the company, collaboration is the new competition. That's why they've partnered with several coffee roasters. Together, they offer the end user a single, complete product. This makes it easier to take responsibility.

Scaling up
"Coffee as a Service" is now available for organizations in and around Rotterdam that purchase more than 50 kilos of coffee beans per month. In 2019, rotterzwam will scale up to major cities in the Netherlands. Ultimately, the concept aims to achieve global coverage through rotterzwam's fungiose franchise .