Kopi luwak or civet coffee, refers to the beans of coffee berries once they have been eaten and excreted by the Asian Palm Civet (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus) or "Coffee Mouse". The name is also used for marketing brewed coffee made from those beans.
Producers of the coffee beans argue that the process may improve coffee through two mechanisms, selection and digestion. Selection occurs if the civets choose to eat coffee cherries containing better beans. Digestive mechanisms may improve the flavor profile of the coffee beans that have been eaten. The civet eats the berries for the beans' fleshy pulp, then in the digestive tract, fermentation occurs. The civet's proteolytic enzymes seep into the beans, making shorter peptides and more free amino acids. Passing through a civet's intestines the beans are then defecated with other fecal matter and collected.
Sumatran kopi luwak farmer holds civet feces with embedded coffee beans. Sumatra, IndonesiaThe method of collected feces from wild civets has given way to intensive farming methods in which caged civets are force fed the coffee beans. This method of production has raised ethical concerns about the treatment of civets due to "horrific conditions" including isolation, poor diet, small cages and a high mortality rate. According to an officer from TRAFFIC, the trade in civets to make kopi luwak may constitute a significant threat to wild civet populations.
Intensive farming is also criticised by traditional farmers because the selection mechanism does not come into play, so the beans are of poor quality compared to beans collected from the wild.
Although kopi luwak is a form of processing, not a variety of coffee, it has been called the most expensive coffee in the world with retail prices reaching €550 / US$700 per kilogram .
Kopi luwak is produced mainly on the islands of Sumatra, Java, Bali, and Sulawesi in the Indonesian Archipelago.
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