Have you ever wondered what Starbucks does with all of those used coffee grounds every day? The popular café serves millions of cups of coffee daily, so that means there are lots of coffee grounds left behind.
Rather than just throwing them away, Starbucks makes good use of them. The company started its Grounds for Your Garden program in 1995. The program has become an important part of Starbucks’ effort to reduce the environmental impact of its stores.
Image: Image by Willfried Wende from Pixabay
Anyone can walk in and pick a FREE bag of used coffee grounds — usually found in a bucket or basket near the entrance and register. Bags may leak a little, so bring a plastic bag or box to transport them home.
Pre-packaged bags of Grounds for Your Garden may not be available in all stores. Check for availability at your local Starbucks café, including those located within grocery stores or big box retailers.
While coffee grounds can be used for gardening and composting, there are many other uses for them.
Neutralize Odors – Coffee grounds absorb orders. Consider placing them in your fridge, gym bag, under a car seat or anywhere else in need of some freshening up.
Cleaning – Coffee grounds are abrasive and can be effective in cleaning dirty pots and pans, as well as tools.
Insect Repellent – Coffee grounds can keep ants, slugs and other pests away from gardens.
Skin Exfoliant – Coffee grounds are coarse and can be useful as an ingredient in skincare regiments. Search the Internet for a variety of recipes for homemade face and body scrubs.
Natural Dye – Coffee grounds and water mixed together can create a nature dye for a variety of projects, including repairing furniture scratches.
The number of bags available varies by location and time of day, so you may need to make a few stops to get what you need.
This post was originally published at LivingontheCheap.com, republished here with permission. Check here for more food deals in Las Vegas. For freebies across the valley, you can check out our Free Events category. Don’t forget to subscribe with your email to receive more of Vegas Living on the Cheap. For even more cheap fun, “like” us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
Vegas Living on the Cheap is a member of 
Leave a Reply