As of 2018, the annual consumption of coffee by adults in Korea is 353 cups per person, showing how much Koreans love coffee. But, on the other hand, 1,150 tons of coffee grounds are created per year. When coffee is extracted from coffee beans, the coffee grounds produce carbon dioxide and causes air pollution when burned, and when it is buried in the ground, caffeine interferes with plant growth and causes soil pollution. Let’s talk about a Korean solution, the startup Alfred.
An eco-friendly solution for Coffee grounds – Alfred
Alfred (alfredpets.com) is the company that pursues social and economic values together by upcycling coffee grounds, and it is attracting attention. The company (CEO Kwon Soon-woo, Shin Han-gyeol) is a leading eco-friendly pet brand that makes “Black Sand (overseas product name: Etiquette),” the cat litter made with coffee grounds.
Alfred developed Black Sand, an eco-friendly and soft-touch luxury cat litter by upcycling discarded coffee grounds. This has the effect of reducing 336 g of carbon dioxide per 1 kg. Also, Black Sand provided a new solution to the pet product industry with its strong deodorizing power that reduces the odor of feces by 99.5% within 30 minutes, which the existing cat litter could not do.
Cassava Black – The high end solution
The company also unveiled “Cassava Black (overseas product name: Etiquette Plus),” a premium product made by blending the coffee cat litter and cassava litter. It has been upgraded by blending cassava sand that has the strongest clumping power to its coffee ground and natural ingredients. Cassava Black has the environmental effect of reducing 150 g of carbon dioxide per 1 kg.
The cat litter currently out in the market doesn’t clump well if the litter particle is too large, and creates too much dust if the particle is too small. Cassava Black solved both by clumping well with cassava litter and three-layer particle system to control dust.
Our products reduce the problem of deforestation and waste of bentonite, and help reduce carbon emissions on the earth. The pet market is growing 20% every year, and we want to grow into a eco-friendly pet service company. This product is the first step towards this movement, and in the future, we will go beyond Korea market to become a global pet company.
Company member
G-hub is a start-up support center in cultural contents established by Gyeonggi-do established to connects idea holders with companies and provides customized services for prospective entrepreneurs and startups, such as startup funding support and expert network support.
→ Gwangmyeong G-hub news special page