New Hartlepool coffee business helping people grow their own food with eco-friendly spin-off scheme

The Headland Coffee Wagon, located on the promenade opposite Montague Street, has been bagging up old coffee grounds for people to use as compost and fertiliser.

Coffee grounds contain nitrogen which, when paired with carbon-rich materials such as dry leaves and newspaper, make healthy compost.

Using coffee grounds as a fertiliser adds organic material to the soil, improving drainage and water retention as well as adding air to the soil.

The owner of the Headland Coffee Wagon, Sam Lee, said: “I very much believe that we should put things back into the earth as much as we can.”

Sam, 46, grows her own food at home and shares an allotment with an experienced gardener.

Despite having a small garden, she believes everyone should try to grow something.

Sam said: "I think everybody needs to be growing food, I really do.

“People really need to learn to have a food source and not be dependent on supermarkets and McDonalds. We need to go back to growing.”

She later added: “I have a son who is eight and it has always been important for me that he knows where food comes from.

"That it’s not from fast food restaurants and supermarket shelves, that it comes from the ground.”

Coffee grounds can be used as compost and fertiliser for fruit and vegetables.

For those wanting coffee grounds, head to the Headland Coffee Wagon, open from 8am to 5pm during the summer holidays.