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Turning waste into furniture
At Mater, we continually strive to push the boundaries of traditional furniture production and beliefs.
The global economy consumes over 100 billion tonnes of materials a year, and only 6.9% of them are cycled back into use (Circularity Gap Report 2025).
Using the world's raw materials to make products that eventually will be thrown away as waste is not a long-lasting solution. Much of this waste ends up in landfills or incinerators.
Mater makes timeless furniture using waste materials such as coffee shells, post-consumer e-waste and wood waste.
Waste streams we use
Coffee shell waste
Coffee shells are a byproduct of coffee roasting but collected they can be used as a strong fibre for our Matek® production.
Discarded fishing nets
Discarded fishing nets are collected, washed, shredded and made into recycled plastic pellets. They are used in the Ocean Collection in Black and Sand.
Pharma plastic waste
Pharma plastic waste is a material made from recycled pharma plastic waste, such as discarded insulin pens. Advances in technology now enable the safe decontamination of medical plastics, allowing materials once destined for incineration to be repurposed.
Post-consumer e-waste
Consists of mixed plastic from large electrical equipment, household appliances, displays, fridges, etc.
Mango wood waste
Mango wood is a byproduct of an already thriving industry. When the trees stop bearing fruits, it's cut down, and a new one is planted. We harvest this wood that was previously burnt or left to break down in our Bowl Table.
Through years of research and testing, we developed Matek®.
The material enables us to make furniture of waste materials by combining fibre with a binder.Coffee bean shells, extracted during the roasting process, are an example of fibre material. Sawdust from wood production is another. The binder material is made from plastic waste. The mix of materials results in a unique compound suitable for press moulding.
Since Matek® can be reprocessed, furniture made with Matek® can be taken back at the end of its life for recycling into new furniture. Take-back is arranged case by case.
Click here to learn more about Matek®