Car company Ford Motor Company and restaurant chain McDonald’s USA teamed up to reuse McDonald’s waste coffee chaff in the production of vehicle parts.

Coffee chaff is the dried skin of coffee beans, which naturally comes off during the roasting process. Every year, millions of pounds of chaff are produced.

Ford found that the chaff can be converted in a durable material to reinforce certain vehicle parts. The chaff is heated to high temperatures under low oxygen, mixed with plastic and other additives and then turned into pellets.

The material can be formed in various shapes. The components will be about 20 per cent lighter and require up to 25 per cent less energy during the moulding process. The heat properties of the chaff component are significantly better than the currently used material.

Photos: Ford / McDonalds