"If food waste were a country, it would be the third biggest source of carbon pollution"
In our last post we introduced you to our Recycled Coffee Oil, which is extracted from used coffee grounds.
However, we omitted what we do with what is left; the defatted coffee grounds... If you thought we threw them away, think again! That's not the Kaffe Bueno way. They, of course, do not go to waste, as they are still full of health-beneficial compounds.
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More and more people eat gluten-free foods in their diets.
Yet, gluten-free flours and baking products are often deficient in essential nutrients such as fibres and proteins.
What if you could get ahold of a sustainable and innovative ingredient, naturally gluten-free but filled with the nutrients other gluten-free flours are low in?
On another note, the food industry - being one of the most wasteful - is constantly faced with a major question, how can we use waste as a resource?
Recycled coffee flour might be the answer.
What is Kaffe Bueno Recycled Coffee Flour?
It is a naturally gluten-free flour obtained from the sterilisation and processing of defatted Spent Coffee Grounds (SCGs). It has a very high nutritional value, with a particularly high content of proteins, dietary fibres, potassium, while being low in saturated fat. It is caffeine free, so there is no risk of turning your baked goods into espressos.
How is recycled coffee flour made?
First, SCGs are collected from hotels and cafés around Copenhagen. Second, coffee oil is extracted from the SCGs using a chemical-free process involving natural solvents and happening at a low temperature, which preserves the coffee grounds’ healthy properties.
Through this process, caffeine is also removed from the SCGs, it is extracted with the coffee oil. Due to the oil's high content of bioactive compounds, it is used as an active ingredient in cosmetics, and because of its aroma it can be used as flavouring agent in food. Once the coffee oil is extracted from the SCGs, we’re left with defatted coffee grounds, which we then take through a sterilisation process using CO2, ensuring it is safe to go back into the food industry as a functional nutritious ingredient.
How is Recycled Coffee Flour Sustainable?
Well, coffee flour is an integral part of Kaffe Bueno’s mission to extend coffee's life and to reduce coffee waste. Producing coffee flour - as well as coffee oil - allows us to unlock the health potential of what is usually considered as waste, which is actually a valuable resource.
As a result, recycled coffee flour is not only good for you, but it’s good for the environment too.
Worldwide coffee consumption is on the rise (ICO, 2018) and SCGs are, most of the time, simply discarded or end up in landfills where their decomposition process ejects methane [30x worse than CO2].
With every tonne of coffee recycled, the emission of 340m3 of methane into the atmosphere are avoided. Additionally, when producing coffee flour and coffee oil, we make sure to use zero-emissions manufacturing techniques.
As a result, recycled coffee flour is not only good for you, but it’s good for the environment too.
Why Is Coffee Flour Relevant For The Food Industry and Consumers?
An increasing number of people are diagnosed with celiac disease, and gluten intolerance is more common than ever. As a result, the demand for gluten-free products continuously increases and the gluten-free products market size is expected to be worth USD $33.05 Billion by 2025 (Grand View Research, 2018). In the baking industry, some gluten-free flours have been developed to satisfy this demand, but they present a certain number of drawbacks.
The main challenge with many existing gluten-free bakery products is that they have lower protein, fibre and/or mineral content than gluten-containing food products (Stantiall & Serventi, 2018). For instance, tapioca flour has very little nutritional value besides carbohydrates (Healthline, 2018). Additionally, consumers are increasingly requesting healthy products, including natural products (Business Wire, 2018). Thus, finding natural gluten-free alternatives to traditional baking products that are as qualitative and nutritional is crucial.
Several natural and nutritional gluten-free flours already exist on the market. Coconut flour, sprouted yellow corn flour, oat flour and brown rice flour are some of the best options out there that are gluten-free while still presenting high levels of fibres and other vitamins and minerals. However, Kaffe Bueno Coffee Flour has demonstrated to exceed on concentration.
The less known amaranth flour and arrowroot flour are also considered as gluten-free options with promising nutritional profiles. As mentioned earlier, Kaffe Bueno Coffee Flour has a highly promising nutritional profile too, while having a low-fat content (see below).
How Can Kaffe Bueno Coffee Flour Be Used In Bakery?
When used in baked goods, recycled coffee flour has a nutty and chocolate-like taste. Lack of gluten affects functionality, so we recommend using between 1 to 25% of coffee flour in your flour mix. It’s a great ingredient to bring an edge and extra nutritional value to bread and pastries.
We’ve already tried it in:
Plus, there are restaurants and bakeries in Copenhagen experimenting with our flour to see what other delicious recipes can be created. Stay tuned!
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Where can I get Recycled Coffee Flour?
We currently have a limited stock. If you're a bakery, baked good manufacturer, restaurant, or know any of the above, get in touch with us to get a 1st mover opportunity. We’d love to hear from you!
If you are an individual and want to see this flour in your favourite baked goods, please share this article and help us spread the word :)