Coffee grounds and 'silverskin' have more antioxidant properties than vitamin C! Hard to believe maybe, but it's true according to the latest study that was published in mid 2015.
Study
The study conducted by the University of Granada published in the journal Food Science and Technology has concluded that the components of coffee beans are 500 times higher in antioxidant activity than vitamin C. This included looking specifically at the coffee grounds and 'silverskin'.
Outer Layer Of the Bean
The elements that are really interesting scientists include the silverskin (the outer layer of the beans) and the coffee grounds which are usually discarded after the brewing process. These are essentially the waste products of coffee but it does beg the question whether we are right to simply throw them away when they could bring such huge health benefits.
In addition to the antioxidants the research also concluded that they also contain high levels of melanoidins which are powerful antimicrobials. These alone could be used to prevent harmful pathogens from growing in food products.
How to Make Use of the Findings
So how can we use the by-products produced in the coffee roasting process? Well you can’t consume coffee grounds or silver skins but you could add their antioxidants in to other foods. To date the Spanish Ministry of Economics and Finance are working on how to harness this potential in the food process.