Thank you for purchasing Gimme! Coffee -- we hope you enjoyed every cup! So, what do you do with your empty coffee bag now that the beans are gone (or perhaps moved into an airtight container)? Our Biotre coffee bags are made from 60% biodegradable renewable wood pulp and 40% special polyethylene with disintegrates faster than standard plastic. They'll even break down in your home compost given enough time. Here's what you do:
1. Remove the tin tie.
This is simple since you can just tear it off. You can reuse the tin tie as a swizzle stick, close other bags, keep computer wires together, or bend it into fun shapes to share with the kids.
2. Remove the degassing valve.
Freshly roasted beans release CO2 gas for some time after the roast. The degassing valve, located on the back of the bag above the label, allows this gas to escape so that the bag doesn't puff up or even explode. This one-way valve lets air out, while keeping freshness in. At this point in time, the valve is not biodegradable or compostable, so it needs to be removed. The easiest way to remove it is to grab a corner of the valve and tear it off. If that doesn’t work, carefully cut the valve off with scissors and discard the valve in your regular trash.
3. Discard or compost the bag.
The remaining bag material is 100% biodegradable. You can either discard directly into your regular trash, knowing that when it reaches the landfill, it will break down and leave nothing but the memory of great coffee, or you can compost the bag. Drop into your regular home compost heap and your Gimme! Coffee bag material biodegrades or composts in the presence of active microbes in water and soil within a few months (estimated). If you have use a commercial compost service, ask them if they can compost these bags. We've found that in a commercial compost heap, the bag will degrade even faster, as these tend to reach a higher temperature.
4. Let us know what you think!
Gimme! Coffee is dedicated to sustainability and to a cleaner future and these bags are a part of our mission. We would love to know what you think! Please contact us with any ideas or suggestions.