My last stop in South-East Asia was Bali.
People either love or hate this island. I met a couple who was travelling for three months in Indonesia and they consciously decided to skip Bali. Many other people are having so much fun and probably will be sad to leave.
I was confused between the two points of view but I decided to come anyway and give it a chance.
So there I was, travelling from one city to another with the kindest taxi driver I could ever find. He was explaining us how Bali was different from the whole country, and how some plants and animals are typical from the island. Eventually, he mentioned something about “Kopi Luwak” being a famous coffee sold worldwide.
I had no idea about it and as he saw my puzzled face he asked us if we wanted to visit a local farmer where we could learn more about it.
What exactly is Kopi Luwak?
We stopped the car and entered into this magical green garden. A nice lady welcomed us and explained a bit about the Balinese houses and a lot of different plants. She showed us a lot of different animals they had, including a baby “luwak”. He was super cute, half cat and half raccoon.
The lady told us the luwak was the animal needed for producing the coffee. It’s is a wild nocturnal animal, who eats mostly fruits, small insect and reptiles and coffee beans.
The luwak eats the latter one but can only digest the coffee cherries and the pulp. The bean itself, already fermented, is simply expelled.
The farmers process its poop and they turn it into coffee, Kopi Luwak!
At the end of the tour, we tasted lots of different teas and coffee locally produced for free. We had the opportunity to taste this special coffee for an additional price (around 4 USD), but we declined.
As we left, we were super happy! We tasted some delicious tea and even the coffee was amazing – and I normally don’t like it!
The cute animal was hard to forget as well, I had never seen something similar and I wanted to know more about it. The lady reassured us they are free and they live up in the mountains. Even though the experience was super positive, once I arrived at the hostel I did some research… And what I found wasn’t pleasant anymore.
Is Kopi Luwak a fair business?
You only need to Google “Kopi Luwak” for discover what this trade is all about.
As this coffee is the most expensive in the world, the business behind it is huge.
Cat civet (the English name for luwak) are, as said above, wild animals. They climb trees and run freely. They need a lot space to move and they eat also coffee bean, together with other fruits, reptiles and insects.
However, they are kept in small cages, with barely no space to move and they are forced to eat only coffee beans.
It takes not so long before luwaks get stressed. After a while they start to lose their fur and most of them don’t survive.
Wild or caged?
Some people might argue that you can find some ethically made Kopi Luwak, and this would be awesome.
Unfortunately, it’s really easy to simply put on a sticker saying “100% cage-free” or “wild sourced”. A lot of undercover investigators stated that there is no strict control over a product label.
Luwaks kept in cages do not eat the finest cherry. They simply eat because they need food. Their diet is not complete and they live in a dirty and unhealthy space.
Therefore, the quality of the coffee produced by caged animals will be much more lower than the free ones.
But how to find an organic, ethical and sustainable kopi luwak?
For this, I don’t have an answer.
Unless you go there and check by yourself, you will never know if cat civets are free or kept in cages.
Tourists and tourists attractions
Sadly many people only saw the commerce and the opportunity behind this coffee. Indonesia – and especially Bali – is becoming every year more popular among tourists. The majority of them visit or participate into activities that involve animal suffering. People love to interact with wild animals, simply because they are not familiar with them.
I had never heard about the cat civet, so of course I was happy when given the opportunity to touch one. If I were a coffee lover, I would have loved to try Kopi Luwak. This is because I had no idea what this business was about.
The same applies to most of animals, especially those who are “used” as tourist attractions.
For example, I had no idea about the business behind elephant riding, but I got informed and I made the conscious decision to avoid those kind of activities, simply because I know what’s the behind it.
The main question I ask my self is: would I treat my own animal like this? Then why should I support a cruel trade like this?
Let’s support wildlife!
I think it’s time to protect animals. Not only luwaks but all kind of animals.
Imagine this world, 20 years from now. Imagine your children asking you what an elephant is, or why some animals do not exist anymore.
How would you feel to tell them some creatures are not on this planet anymore because of us?
That human beings exploited other beings just for making money?
We are all living on this planet but some people are not aware of the consequences of their actions.
Be conscious about your life. Do not harm the innocent, protect them.
Did you know about Kopi Luwak and its trade? Have you ever drink it?
Let me know it in the comment section!
Peace,
Sonia
