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“Kopi luwak” or “cat-poop coffee” is made from the beans of coffee berries that have been eaten and excreted by the Asian palm civet, or civet cat. To produce it, civet cats are captured from their natural habitat in Indonesia or bought at live-animal markets, confined to miserably small cages, and fed an unhealthy, unnatural diet that consists primarily of coffee berries so that producers can harvest the coffee beans from their faeces. This is not a delicacy; it’s a disgrace.
A Decade of Exposing Kopi Luwak Cruelty – and the Abuse Continues
Multiple PETA Asia investigations have repeatedly shown the toll that constant confinement has taken on sensitive Asian palm civet cats. At farms, they are often seen incessantly pacing and spinning inside their tiny, barren cages, usually made from wire. These are signs of extreme psychological distress caused by the anguish and frustration of their intense imprisonment.
“Wildly-Sourced” Is a Lie
Customers and retailers are deceived by producers who deliberately mislabel the beans from captive civet cats as “wild-sourced.” For over a decade, PETA Asia investigators have encountered every trick the kopi luwak industry uses to deceive the public. One farm worker told an investigator, “We label this as wild because even though the animals are caged now, they came from the wild.” Other farmers have openly admitted that gathering enough wild civet cat excrement would be nearly impossible. To mask this, some producers collect a small portion of beans from free-roaming civets, mix it with beans from caged animals, and label the product “wild-sourced.” Others have brazenly told investigators that they label the coffee from caged animals as “wild.” The industry knowingly obtains sham certifications or mislabelled coffee from captive animals, which can then be exported worldwide and sold as “wild-sourced.”
Brewing the Next Pandemic
Stressed animals caged in their waste have low immune systems, making such facilities breeding grounds for zoonotic diseases. SARS, which has an estimated human fatality rate of around 15%, has jumped from civet cats to humans. Scientists have also identified civet cats as a possible “intermediate host” for COVID-19, potentially allowing the virus to mutate and pass from bats to humans.
It’s Time to Cut the Crap
Kopi luwak isn’t a delicacy – it’s a disgrace. No matter which country you’re in or what assurances you’ve received, please don’t purchase or drink it.
Please urge Harrods, Rich Exclusive Coffee, Sea Island Coffee, The Roast & Post Coffee Co, and Bacha Coffee to stop funding cruelty to civet cats by ending the sale of kopi luwak today: