Give Your Workout a Jolt

Now you can help the environment by wearing your morning cup of coffee (well, technically someone else's) – and we don't mean by spilling it. A Taiwanese manufacturing company has figured out a way to spin coffee grounds into sportswear. Jason Chen, the general manager of Taiwan's Singtex Industrial Company, had a jolt while sipping his java in – you guessed it – Starbucks. After four years of development, Chen's company is taking the joe giant’s grounds waste (about 400 kg or 880 lbs per month) and turning them into tops. Apparently the process is a lot like that of turning bamboo into fabric, and the just-brewed material is soft, light, flexible, and water resistant. It’s also got a shot of "activated" carbon derived from coconut, which makes it quick-drying, water resistant, and odor-resistant (it binds to sweat). The new fabric also protects wearers from harmful UV rays. Customers are caffeinated over the product, too.

"S. Café beats Gore-Tex fabrics in terms of UV protection, faster drying time, odor control and better pricing point," Wang Wei-kuo, general manager of Taiwan fitness fashion distributor Uranus International, told the Taipei Times. Singtex’s products also include sportswear made from recycled plastic bottles, a la Patagonia. It supplies to companies such as Nike, North Face, Adidas and Puma. Cool beans, eh?