University of Cincinnati Student Uses Food Waste to Create New Products

University of Cincinnati student, Caroline Bussick, was tasked with a project to design something with sustainability in mind, and she did so with food waste to create new products.

Bussick used food waste, some of which were sourced from a local coffee shop, Mom n Em’s Coffee, for coffee grounds and avocado pits, to create dye materials. She then screen-printed new designs on fabric, created from recycled fabric portions, for her project.

“I really ran with the idea of turning waste into worth and seeing how we can utilize waste streams to create more products and extend the valuable lifestream," Bussick said. “All of these colors were made from avocado pits, onion skins, coffee grounds and they were all secondhand waste from Mom n ‘Em’s and my own kitchen.”

The end result of Bussick’s project is a canvas bag, featuring the Mom n Em’s Coffee logo, designed for the store. Bussick mentioned, after completing her project, that she wants a future in sustainability in some way after graduation.

“There can be a lot we can do as designers and product developers in general to keep waste out of landfill or out of compost and re-thinking our waste streams," she said.