Being an ardent coffee drinker, sometimes I wonder what the most expensive coffee looks like. Upon some research, I was appalled that the most-priced coffee is animal poop coffee. Yes, animal poop is the priciest coffee you can get on the market today.
Well, it can come as a surprise, but some of the most popular pop coffee is Kopi Luwak. Most of these coffees commonly originate from Asian countries.
To learn more about poop coffee, let’s see different aspects to help you get more understanding.
What Is Animal Poop Coffee?
As the name suggests, animal poop coffee is any coffee beans fermented in animal guts. The animals excrete these beans, which are then roasted.
Ripe coffee cherries are sweet. Some animals like consuming these berries; when they poop, the beans are collected, processed, and used for brewing.
What animal poops coffee beans?
Different animals are used to make poop coffee. Some animals commonly used to poop coffee include civet cats, monkeys, elephants, birds, and bats.
Due to the different digestive processes, each coffee comes with varying profiles.
How animal poop coffee is made?
Usually, animal pooped coffee production is different from regular coffee. The fermentation of beans happens in the animal digestive tract. After excretion, the beans are collected and cleaned.
After the cleaning process, nothing else happens to the coffee beans. They are appropriately dried and ready for roasting.
How Do Animals Transform Coffee Through Digestion?
- In the first step, animals eat the ripe coffee cherries. Most animals chew the beans to obtain the sweet-tasting mucilage. This helps in easing digestion in the stomach.
- When the beans are in the stomach, there is the production of digestive juices that act on the skin, pulp, and husked beans. Most animals can’t digest the tough coffee husks. Instead, the digestive juices dissolve some essential nutrients and proteins absorbed in the animal body.
- Apart from absorbing nutrients, the enzymes and bacteria in the digestive juices change coffee’s chemical composition. The ability of the animal to digest coffee berries differs. The taste and nutrient composition of coffee made from poop differ.
Animal poop coffee is way different from regular ones in the following ways,
Low tannins: Some animals, like Civet cats, can digest complex polyphenols known as tannins. Thus, drinking coffee like Kopi Luwak is safer for your teeth and prevents other effects.
Reduced caffeine: Some components are reduced because the coffee beans are half digested. Caffeine is one of them; drinking this coffee is smooth and has no elevated caffeine in the body, which can lead to jitters.
Easy to digest: Having predigested, the kind of coffee obtained from animal poop is smooth and delicate. Therefore, coffee is low in acid and easy to digest for most people.
The cruel secrets about animal poop coffee
The popularization of animal poops coffee beans has triggered an increase in demand. However, this has drawbacks. It’s challenging to follow wild animals to collect pooped coffee beans. Therefore, this has resulted in hundreds of animals being caged, denying them living in their natural habitat.
Apart from animal cruelty, people whole collect pooped coffee and earn peanuts. While international markets for animal poop coffee can hit over $1000 per kilo, farmers make around $100 per kilo.
What are different types of animal poop?
As I mentioned earlier, coffee isn’t from one animal. Instead, different animals are involved in the production of this coffee type. Below are some of the animals and types of coffee they produce.
Civet Cat Poop Coffee
Civet cats poop coffee obtained from civet cats. They are known as Asian palm civets. Contrary to many things, these animals aren’t cats. They are small mammals closely related to the mongoose and native to the South East Asia countries of Vietnam, Indonesia, and others.
The cats consume coffee which results in Kopi Luwak coffee. It’s one of the most known coffee from animal poop and offers rich sweet, nutty chocolate and hints of caramel.
Monkey poop coffee
Monkeys are also included in the production of animal poop coffee. Does this sound strange? Yes, to many people. However, monkeys are used to produce coffee, especially in India and Taiwan.
Unlike in the case of Civet cats, Rhesus monkeys don’t poop these coffee beans. Instead, they chew the cherries, and as they enjoy the sweet juice, the saliva enzymes act on the beans. The spitted beans have a great transformation, which leads to changes in flavor and other qualities.
Monkey poop coffee has a flavorful body with vanilla, chocolate, nuts, and citrus notes.
Elephant poop coffee
Can you drink elephant poop coffee? Does it even exist? Yes, it exists and is known as Black Ivory coffee. This kind of coffee commonly originates from Thailand.
Like other animals pooped coffee, this one is collected from the waste of Elephants. Typically, Arabica coffee beans are consumed by elephants. The enzymes in the elephant’s stomach break down some proteins in the coffee beans.
Although the coffee is partially digested, the taste is different from kopi Luwak. However, it has distinctive qualities, and it’s one of the rarest and most expensive coffee you can buy, going up to $50 per cup.
Elephant poop coffee has a flavor that features grass notes, tamarind spices, and chocolate. The coffee is smooth without bitterness, and acidity is significantly lower.
Bird Poop Coffee
Like civet cats, birds are also used in making bird poop coffee. However, this method of making coffee is common in Brazil. Jacu bird feeds on ripe coffee berries, and the pooped berries are collected, cleaned, and processed.
The process is typical in small-scale coffee plantations in Brazil, whereby workers spend time collecting droppings from this bird. Initially, the bird was known as a pest because of eating ripe coffee cherries on coffee farms. However, after realizing they could turn its poop into a goldmine, Jacu bird coffee was born.
If you want to taste this coffee, it has incredible flavor. It tastes sweet with cinnamon notes, and the aftertaste is superb.
Bat Poop Coffee
Bat poop coffee is another type of Kopi Luwak specialty coffee. The method of production is similar to that of monkey poop coffee. Wild fruit bats, known as Artibeus jamaicensis, native to Central America, eat ripe coffee cherries to enjoy the sweet sap inside the coffee. However, the bat doesn’t fully chew the beans, and the coffee remains intact.
As the bat licks the mucilage, the enzymes in the saliva act on the beans. The bat doesn’t swallow the coffee, enabling them to ferment outside the gut. The beans are then collected, cleaned, and roasted, ready for brewing.
The coffee produced through bats is unique and expensive. It delivers a bit of high acidity with floral and fruity notes.
Is poop coffee good for you?
Is it worth drinking animal poop coffee? I can say the coffee confidently is perfect for anyone looking for specialty and unique coffee. Consuming Kopi Luwak coffee over traditional coffee is impressive since it has many benefits.
One of the benefits is low caffeine. Coffee pre-digestion by animals is fantastic in the reduction of caffeine levels. With a low level of caffeine in beans, there are no crashes after enjoying a cup of coffee due to extreme stimulant levels.
Another one is antioxidants. Although the beans have prior digestion, they also contain some antioxidants. Having these phytochemicals in your body helps in fighting cancer in the body.
Improved coffee taste is another thing that should motivate you to try poop coffee. Due to enzymatic action, it is possible to break some bitter coffee compounds. With less bitterness, the coffee is super and offers a smooth taste.
Why poop coffee isn’t good for you?
Kopi Luwak coffee feels good, but you should always ensure your coffee is ethically sourced. Due to the reported animal abuses, it can be hard to ascertain whether your coffee is cruelty-free.
Besides cruelty to caged animals, coffee is unfairly traded. Some of the coffee is extremely hard to produce, especially where it’s collected in the wild where workers are paid little, yet coffee is sold expensively in international markets.
How much is poop coffee?
Animal poop coffee, commonly known as Kopi Luwak, is the most expensive coffee in the world. The price is due to the rare nature of the coffee and the complicated production process.
Some coffee like black ivory, Kopi Luwak, Jacu bird coffee, and others can sell for over $1000 per kilo. The high price is due to the rare nature of this coffee.
Usually, coffee follows the nature of demand and supply. It is rare to get, and complicated production makes it super expensive.
Final words
Animal poop coffee is undoubtedly one of the most coveted specialty coffees. Apart from being rare, it still has fantastic benefits for the body. With Kopi Luwak being the most popular and oldest poop coffee, it’s among the most expensive. Therefore, I recommend you taste any animal poop coffee and feel the difference.
