Eco-Friendly “Java Log” Aims for More of the Fake Firewood Market
Ah, winter — icicles on the eves, smoke rising from the chimneys, a crackling fire, and emerging from it, that fragrant, familiar smell of … coffee? Yep, that’s right: A Canadian company is marketing fake logs made of recycled coffee grounds. Other fake logs, made of everything from sawdust and paraffin to corn cobs and peach pits, have been on the market for 50-some years. But the Java Log burns brighter and hotter than sawdust logs and produces 88 percent less carbon monoxide than the real thing, according to Robustion, the company that makes it. Robustion has been manufacturing and selling the logs in Canada for three years, and now hopes to create recycling agreements with major coffeehouse chains such as Starbucks. The company also hopes to expand its market in the U.S., where it currently sells Java Logs in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York.
