Project
Permafungi is a social cooperative settled in Brussels that recycles urban waste : coffee grounds!
The idea behind this project was based on two observations – an abundance of urban waste and a quite high unemployment rate among young people. Several researches have been launched in 2013 to recycle coffee grounds in order to grow oyster mushrooms, while providing a sustainable and stable job to young people in Brussels.
With the coffee grounds gathered by bike, we produce one ton of fresh oyster mushrooms and ten tons of organic fertilizer by recycling 5 tonnes of coffee grounds. All of it in a circular economy!
Moreover, guided tours and training were made available, as well as production kits in order to grow mushrooms and recycle your own coffee grounds at home!
Our 3 activities
EAT
We produce local, healthy and organic food, from an urban waste – coffee grounds. Coffee grounds are used as a base for growing mushrooms. The compost made from growing mushrooms is then reused as natural fertilizer and a base in creating biodegradables lamps – LumiFungi.
GROW
We also offer ready-to-use cultivation kits and Fungi Pop. This serves two purposes: raising awareness of urban agriculture and allowing people to reconnect with the practice of food production at home, while living an original and fun experience!
LEARN
On a daily basis, we promote our project and its goals to the curious people through guided tours, workshops and training. The objective is to inspire people to start growing mushrooms in circular economy and to sensitize to urban agriculture.
Our mission
Our mission is to contribute to urban resilience. The concept of urban resilience was developed by Rob Hopkins and the Transition Movement. It is defined as “the capacity of a system to absorb disturbance and reorganize while undergoing change so as to still retain essentially the same function, structure, identity, and feedbacks”.
In addition to urban waste recycling, we carry out our mission through different ways:
A healthy and local food production
We cultivate organic oyster mushrooms with passion, they are all pesticide-free and come from local resources, before being delivered to people locally.
A minimization of fossil fuels
Our processes of collecting coffee grounds and delivering our oyster mushrooms are always being done by bike. Most of our facilities come from recycling and salvage.
A participatory governance
At Permafungi, decision-making is done in collaboration and does not follow a vertical model.
A creation of a skilled workforce
We want to give everyone the opportunity to have a rewarding and sustainable work, especially to young people with few skills.
The awareness of the population
To maximize our impact, we regularly organize visits and trainings to raise awareness about urban agriculture and the circular economy.
Environmental innovation
At Permafungi, we constantly innovate by implementing other projects that contribute to the development of a greener and more responsible society !
