Coffee Waste for Energy: An Utz initiative

We always like to hear about the coffee industry becoming more sustainable, especially because the coffee growing countries are mostly third world and in many cases being taken advantage of by the people at the end of the coffee chain.

UTZ is an organisation dedicated to providing sustainability skills to farmers across the coffee growing world. We were lucky enough to meet Paul at the recent Coffee and Chocolate Expo and we will be featuring the organisation in the December issue of the magazine, so keep your eyes peeled for that one.


This is just one of their awesome projects.

"UTZ certified’s Coffee Wastewater project is turning toxic wastewater — produced by coffee farming — into energy on a far larger scale, tackling climate change and protecting water resources in the process.

Ordinarily, the wastewater created by coffee farming is toxic, and if left untreated, it can contaminate water resources nearby with harmful effects on flora and fauna. The Coffee Wastewater Project by UTZ tested wastewater from a range of coffee farms of varying sizes and created treatments and mechanisms to reduce the environmental impact. While the wastewater is usually left untreated and disposed of in nearby rivers, the company now uses the wastewater to generate energy. The resulting resource – Biogas — can be used to power local mills and villages, and improve indoor environments for families by replacing firewood with domestic gas stoves for cooking."