In 2019, the car company Ford started adding something unexpected to its headlights: coffee waste!
When coffee beans are roasted, the husk falls off. This leftover material is called chaff. It’s usually thrown away. The plastic that holds headlights in place usually contains a mineral called talc. Researchers at Ford discovered that coffee chaff can replace talc. The result—a lighter, more Earth-friendly headlight made in part from food waste.
Ford teamed up with McDonald’s to use the fast-food chain’s coffee waste, reducing the amount that goes in landfills. Bright idea!