Recycling Coffee Grounds
If you’re a coffee drinker (not of the
instant variety), those used coffee grounds can be put to good use in a
number of ways. One way is making your own coffee body scrub. To make a
simple exfoliating scrub mix together coffee grounds, some sugar and
coconut oil. If the coconut oil is solidified, melt it a little first
for easier mixing. Mix together about ½ cup of coffee grounds, ¼ cup of
sugar and ¼ cup of coconut oil. The stickiness of the sugar helps bind
the ingredients together and also assists with exfoliating but it isn’t
absolutely necessary so omit the sugar if you prefer and use more coffee
grounds. Many of the commercially sold coffee scrubs also contain added
ingredients such as cinnamon, essential oils etc, so feel free to
experiment. Coffee scrubs can also be used on your face but coconut oil
may clog pores so best to substitute for another type of oil such as
olive oil, hemp oil or grape seed oil. Store any unused portion of the
scrub in the fridge to prevent mold forming and best to use within a few
weeks.
Please note:
after you’ve rinsed off the scrub your shower recess will be extremely
slippery so be very, very careful. Another factor to consider is any
potential issues caused by coconut oil and coffee grounds being rinsed
into drain pipes. A little on occasion shouldn’t be a problem but if
using regularly, place a few paper towels over the drain hole to soak up
excess oil and catch the coffee grounds. It can then be discarded
straight into your compost bin.
Speaking
of compost bins, coffee grounds can also be beneficial to your garden.
Your saved coffee grounds can be added to your compost bin/bay or worm
farm. Or dig some directly into the soil around any plants that have a
fondness for acidic soil such as blueberries, gooseberries, potatoes,
rhubarb, chillies, radish etc. However, in all honesty you’d likely need
to use loads of coffee grounds to change the acidity of the soil due to
the used grounds having lost most of their acidity. Although they
certainly will assist with improving soil structure, help with retaining
moisture and attract earthworms! So now enjoy your coffee guilt-free,
knowing the goodness it provides. Coffee makes the world a better place.
This is a blog post that I had originally written and published on the Infinite Earth - Organic Market website in August 2018.