Coffee is one of the most important agriculture commodities in the world. Ethiopia had been the origin of coffee because coffee plant was initially found and cultivated in the Kaffa province. Due to the great demand of coffee, large amounts of residues are generated in the coffee industry, which are toxic and represent serious environmental problems. 100 kg of fresh berry gives about 40 kg of wet waste pulp. Coffee pulp contains caffeine, tannins, polyphenols and organic solid residues. It shows toxic nature and thus not been utilized beneficially. This effluent is being directly discharged to the nearby water bodies causing severe ailments like overexcitement, skin irritation, stomach pain, nausea and breathing problem. Severeness of this waste causes a serious environmental problem among the residents of nearby area. For this reason, efforts have been made to develop methods for coffee waste treatment and management, also its utilization as a raw material for the production of bio energy is emerging as a new technology. Recently, some attempts have been made to use these residues for energy or value-added compounds production as strategies to reduce their toxicity levels. The present article provides an overview regarding coffee and its main industrial residues. Based on the data, it was concluded that coffee may be considered as one of the most valuable primary products in world trade, crucial to the economies and politics of many developing countries since its cultivation, processing, trading, transportation, and marketing provide employment for millions of people. As a consequence of this big market, the reuse of the main coffee industry residues is of significant importance from environmental and economical viewpoints.
