Could the Best Cocoa-Free Chocolate Come From Coffee Waste?

As cocoa and coffee prices reach record highs, one startup is turning waste from the world’s favourite drink into its favourite sweet treat.

What if your hot chocolate was made from coffee waste?

As the world’s largest producer of coffee, Brazil is responsible for a lot of waste that comes from the industry too. In 2017, its industry was responsible for over 3.3 million tonnes of organic waste.

Much of this waste gets discarded – from the outer husks of the coffee cherry to the silver skin that coats the bean – even though these byproducts are ripe for industrial use. According to the International Coffee Organization, the sector generates over 40 million tonnes of biomass annually.

This is a problem for an industry that already has a heavy impact on the planet and its water resources. Coffee production emits more greenhouse gases than pork, shrimp, rice and cheese – and studies suggest that 40-70% of these emissions come during the cultivation and processing stages.

For one Brazilian startup, this just didn’t make sense. Why waste biomass that is highly functional and nutritional, especially at a time when both hunger and food prices are skyrocketing?

Its solution? Chocolate made from coffee waste instead of cocoa beans, which solves multiple problems at once: it lowers the emissions of chocolate production, one of the only commodities more carbon-intensive than coffee; it saves food waste, another major source of emissions; and it tackles the record-high prices of cocoa.

“Our coffee-husk-derived ingredient costs 30% less than conventional cocoa powder, making it a cost-effective alternative without compromising functionality or sensory experience,” explains Sérgio Pinto, co-founder and CEO of Cellva Ingredients.

The São Paulo-based biotech startup was founded in 2022 and originally was working on cultivated pork fat but has since expanded its platform to offer an upcycled ingredient that companies can use to replace up to 70% of cocoa in various applications. It will unveil the new ingredient, called CoffeeCoa, at the Future Food Tech Summit in San Francisco tomorrow (March 13).

Client interest strong as Cellva scales up

Cellva claims its coffee-waste-derived cocoa alternative can save the food industry $435M every year. This figure reflects the market potential for sustainable and functional ingredients, covering both the food sector (chocolates, baked goods and confectionery) and the nutraceutical industry, which is increasingly incorporating bioactive compounds with antioxidant properties,” Pinto tells Green Queen.

The firm uses byproducts like parchment and silver skin – the former is a protective cellulose layer over the coffee bean, and the latter is the inner-most covering that falls off during roasting (a process that turns it into chaff).

“Coffee and cocoa have intrinsically similar notes and characteristics, so our process simply aims to isolate the compounds responsible for them,” Pinto says. “We obtain a bioactive extract from the husks, which is microencapsulated using our proprietary processes, ensuring better stability and sensory properties. The microencapsulated extract can then be incorporated into any food matrix, including chocolate formulations.”

The startup sources its coffee husks from Bahia – ironically Brazil’s largest cocoa-producing state. “We are actively sourcing from new suppliers – domestically and internationally – as we expect a large demand,” says Pinto.

He explains that despite the pre-launch status, Cellva has secured over $1M in committed interest contracts from its B2B clients, worth over 80 tonnes a year in volume. To meet this demand, it’s establishing a manufacturing facility in Bahia in partnership with “an extremely experienced operator”. “Additionally, we are refining distribution agreements across Latin America, ensuring broad market access and commercial scalability,” he says.

CoffeeCoa offers functional and health gains

Apart from the financial and environmental benefits, CoffeeCoa is rich in antioxidants and fibre, helping improve digestion, boost satiety, and enhance metabolic health. “The health benefits stem from the bioactive compounds in coffee husks, particularly chlorogenic acids, trigonelline, and polyphenols,” says Pinto.

“[These] provide antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and metabolic benefits, supporting heart health, cognitive function, gut microbiome balance, and weight management, making cellva’s ingredient a powerful functional alternative to cocoa,” he adds.

“Tests showed that the microcapsules retained high levels of antioxidant capacity and total polyphenol content, even after being incorporated into food applications. The encapsulation technology preserves and enhances these bioactive properties, offering a functional ingredient with potential health benefits. And as tasty and colourful as cocoa.”

Speaking of functionality, Cellva claims the upcycled ingredient has a naturally sweet profile, making it an ideal substitute for cocoa in products like baked goods (such as brownies or muffins), beverages, functional foods, supplements, and, of course, chocolates.

“Importantly, it maintains the sensory qualities of cocoa – taste, texture, and appearance – while providing greater stability in formulations,” notes Pinto.

“We recognise that our strength is in using technology to develop and scale ingredients and solutions,” he adds, noting that the company doesn’t intend to sell cocoa powder or finished chocolates. “What we plan instead is to offer an affordable and functional ingredient that can be incorporated into various formulations, substituting partially and complementing the use of cocoa.”

Cellva raising funds to expand production

Pinto highlights that CoffeeCoa provides a “more stable pricing structure while adding sustainability value to manufacturers”, considering the volatility of cocoa prices.

While the chocolate industry itself is a major polluter, climate change is wiping out cocoa crops, with global stocks falling to their lowest levels in a decade. Left unaddressed, a third of the world’s cocoa trees might die out by 2050.

Cocoa prices shot up by three- to fourfold in 2024, reaching all-time highs – in New York, cocoa futures reached a record $12,565 per tonne in mid-December. In fact, cocoa was the fastest-gaining commodity in the value chain last year, and prices are likely to stay high this year.

It’s why industry behemoths like Lindt, Puratos, and Mondelēz International are investing in low-carbon, climate-resilient solutions like cell-based and cocoa-free chocolate.

Cellva itself has attracted the interest of investors, securing $1.7M from ProVeg, Rumbo Ventures, and AirCapital. Now, it is extending its funding round to $4.6M, with $2.9M already secured.

“This capital will be used to expand our commercial reach, ensure working capital for scaling production, and finalise our bioactive ingredient operations in the Amazon region, reinforcing our positioning in sustainable, high-value food innovations,” says Pinto.

“The demand for clean-label, upcycled, and functional food ingredients is accelerating, and our technology aligns with this shift by offering a novel, health-oriented ingredient with a strong environmental impact.”