A coffee cup made out of coffee?

Many of the entries in the Betacup Challenge suggest that it's going to be difficult for people to give up their disposable coffee cup habits altogether, and seek a biodegradable alternative. This one might be the most unusual of the bunch: it's made out of...coffee.

"If we look for a biodegradable material in coffee shops, the very first material that we see is the used coffee powder," the designer explained on the contest entry. "It can be formed and also works as an insulating container. So there is only a covering layer needed to gain water resistance properties."

The designer envisions coffee cup makers in each Starbucks to press coffee and soy wax into cups and then fill them. The machinery has not yet been designed.