Researchers in India have analyzed the chemical changes that occur when coffee beans pass through the digestive systems of wild Asian palm civets, explaining the luxury beverage's prized taste. The study highlights higher fat content and lower acidity in these beans compared to regular ones. The findings aim to enable artificial production, avoiding the cruelty of caged civet farming.
Civet coffee, known as kopi luwak, derives its value from beans processed in the guts of Asian palm civets (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus), mongoose-like animals native to South and South-East Asia. A kilogram of these beans can fetch over $1,000, making it one of the world's most expensive beverages. Primarily produced in Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam, with smaller operations in India and East Timor, the industry faces criticism from animal welfare groups for confining thousands of civets in poor conditions.
To understand the transformation, Palatty Allesh Sinu at Central University of Kerala and his team collected samples from five coffee farms near Kodagu in India's Western Ghats. Here, wild civets roam freely, and workers gather beans from their scats alongside tree-harvested robusta beans. "The places we worked have a harmonious interaction between planters and civets," Sinu noted. "We want to bring the facts about the chemical composition to the planters."
The researchers gathered nearly 70 civet scats and compared them to manually harvested beans through chemical tests. Civet beans showed significantly higher total fat, with slightly lower caffeine, protein, and acid levels. The reduced acidity likely stems from fermentation during digestion. Volatile organic compounds also differed markedly, with some typical coffee components absent or minimal in civet beans.
These changes may explain the coffee's appeal: higher fat could enhance aroma and flavor, while lower proteins reduce bitterness. Sinu emphasized the cruelty of caging civets and hopes to replicate the process artificially. "We assume that the gut microbiome might help some way in the fermentation process," he said. "Once we know the enzymes involved in digestion and fermentation, we may be able to artificially make civet coffee."
The study appears in Scientific Reports (DOI: 10.1038/s41598-025-21545-x).