The South East Local Enterprise Partnership (SELEP) has welcomed the news that London Stansted Airport is set to become the first airport in the world to convert all of its coffee waste into solid biofuel.
London Stansted Airport partnered with Cambridgeshire-based bio-bean, the world’s largest recycler of coffee grounds, for the initiative after a successful trial. According to London Stansted, passengers at the airport drink more than 6 million cups of coffee per year, creating more than 150 tonnes of coffee waste.
The new partnership will see all 21 of London Stansted Airport’s coffee shops, restaurants and bars segregate all spent coffee grounds before transporting the waste to bio-bean’s processing facility near Huntingdon.
Bio-bean converts the grounds into Coffee Logs, which comprise the waste of around 25 cups of coffee each and are used in domestic wood burners and multi-fuel stoves as a more sustainable and environmentally friendly fuel source.
London Stansted noted that recycling coffee grounds in this way saves 80% on CO2e emissions compared with sending the waste to landfill, and 70% than if they were sent to an anaerobic digestion facility. The airport said that to mark the launch of the scheme, it will be giving away 2,000 fuel logs to the local community.
SELEP Chair Christian Brodie said:
“That London Stansted Airport is leading the way on a global scale for such an important initiative is another milestone for our area. Schemes such as these help to lower the overall carbon footprint in the South East, contributing greatly to our green agenda.
“As the area’s key international entry point, this partnership shows visitors flying into the South East from around the world that when it comes to sustainability and green initiatives, London Stansted is a guiding force for the rest of the country’s airports.”
London Stansted Airport COO Steve Griffiths said: “We are always looking at new and innovative ways to reduce waste and our impact on the environment and are extremely proud of our track record and commitment to sending zero waste to landfill.
“While achieving this can sometimes be easier said than done, this exciting new partnership is the perfect example of what is possible if we think a bit differently, and we are proud to be the first UK airport to convert its coffee waste to fuel.”
Bio-bean director and CCO George May added: “We’re thrilled to have our local international airport choose to recycle its spent coffee grounds with bio-bean. Transforming 150 tonnes of coffee waste every year into Coffee Logs will save over 85 tonnes of CO2e emissions.”
“Stansted’s commitment to recycling its coffee waste is a step in the right direction for the aviation industry, and one we hope will serve as a catalyst for others to follow suit.”