Coffee roasters: how to achieve zero waste

What is zero waste?

In its simplest definition, zero waste means diverting at least 90% of waste from landfills, incineration and the environment. But it's not just about composting or recycling. Zero waste is an environmental movement that redefines the way we make, consume and dispose of things.

Making the coffee trade more sustainable has become an urgent task that includes every link in the supply chain. But a lot of times we just focus on coffee farms and coffee shops and forget about roasters.

Roasting coffee is quite efficient compared to other stages, but it still consumes a lot of energy and involves a lot of solid waste. According to one study, the roasting, packaging and distribution of coffee accounts for around 15% of its carbon footprint from seed to cup.

How can coffee roasters achieve zero waste?

For professional coffee roasters, reducing their carbon footprint and achieving carbon neutrality by offsetting greenhouse gas emissions as much as possible are important criteria for a zero-waste operation.

To achieve zero waste, the entire coffee supply chain must be assessed. For coffee roasters, the biggest challenges are both the machine and the packaging.

For any roaster looking to use less energy, the obvious place to start is their machines. Professional roasters may also consider investing in greener machinery to reduce emissions. Data has shown that switching to an energy efficient roaster can reduce the carbon footprint of each roasting cycle by up to 90%, saving more than 150 metric tons of CO2 emissions if the roaster uses renewable energy.

As the countdown from seed to cup, sustainable coffee bags are an effective way for specialty coffee roasters to reduce their carbon footprint. Replacing single-use plastics that require a lot of energy to produce and have very short life cycles with renewable materials such as reusable, recyclable or compostable packaging can help reduce carbon footprints and become carbon neutral.

More and more coffee roasters are slowly realizing the need to reduce waste and emissions. Reducing carbon emissions should be a top priority for all professional roasters, not only for the success of their business, but also for the future of coffee. Achieving zero waste is just one goal in coffee roasters' pursuit of sustainable journeys and requires greater determination to make a real impact, supporting the highest and best use of our resources.