Mikael Jasin Turns Coffee Waste Into a Valuable Resource

JAKARTA - The founder of CATUR Coffee Company and So So Good Coffee Company and Indonesia's representative at the World Barista Championship, Mikael Jasin, is committed to not only producing a good final product but also protecting natural resources that have been affected by coffee production since the start of the production process.

Coffee waste is considered useless waste, but if it is managed properly, it has many benefits and uses in everyday life. Many coffee farmers have not utilized coffee waste optimally, therefore Mikael Jasin and his team have planned a program to manage coffee industry waste from upstream to downstream.

"In my opinion, coffee is one of the agents of change that can have an impact on the coffee industry and other industries in Indonesia, one of which is by implementing a circular economy," said Mikael Jasin in his written statement, Saturday, January 15.

"I hope that the implementation of coffee bean waste management, which is currently being worked on, can also encourage other coffee industry players to optimize the use of coffee beans," he added.

In early January 2022, CATUR Coffee Company received funding from Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) to develop a program to empower coffee and cocoa farmers to implement coffee fermentation and waste management from agricultural processes, before and after harvest.

CATUR Coffee Company and So So Good Coffee Company will help coffee and cocoa farmers to apply a special starter for fermentation and waste management using mycoremediation, namely liquid waste from coffee washing stations.

Farmers will also recycle cascara skins or coffee cherries to be processed into Succinic Acid and Cascara Flour. Not only that, the waste of wet coffee grounds will also be processed into compost.

Succinic Acid or succinic acid has a content that makes it the main ingredient that is useful in skincare. The content contained in Succinic Acid has been shown to have high antioxidant properties so that it can fight cell damage due to pollution and UV exposure, and can remove dead skin cells.

Not only Succinic Acid, but Cascara flour made from coffee husks collected after the coffee beans are removed from the cherries, dried in the sun, and then ground, is high in nutrients and caffeine.

For the wet coffee grounds that have been used, Mikael then processes it into compost which is useful for fertilizing plants so that they are fertile. In addition, Mikael Jasin also uses a paper-based glass as a container used to serve coffee.

The use of recycled paper-based glasses is a commitment made by Mikael and his team to implement environmentally friendly aspects in their business.

Coffee has become a core human need in carrying out daily activities. Thus, coffee production has increased significantly in the last five years.

Based on data from the Indonesian Ministry of Agriculture, Indonesia will produce 765,415 tons of coffee in 2021. With that amount of production, the coffee industry certainly produces hundreds of thousands of tons of used coffee grounds every year. Much of this waste ends up in landfills and emits harmful greenhouse gases, including methane.

With this coffee waste management, it can help reduce the disposal of organic waste.

"In addition to enjoying the taste of coffee, coffee players must also pay attention to the environment so that the coffee industry can continue to grow well in a sustainable manner," said Mikael Jasin.

Mikael hopes that the implementation of coffee waste management that he has done with CATUR Coffee Company and So So Good Coffee Company can raise public awareness of the many useful resources that can be created from coffee waste, and in the end, this action can be followed by many people.

Mikael believes that coffee waste management plays an important role in his journey to become an agent of change. Mikael also hopes to work closely with the government and NGOs to optimize the many positive possibilities of coffee waste management that can support the national and international economy.