Tourists planning visits to Bali are being called to reconsider tours to visit civet cat coffee plantations and purchasing ‘kopi luwak’ to take home with them.
The calls come from animal rights organization PETA, though other leading animal welfare organizations like World Animal Protection and Four Paws Australia have also run campaigns raising awareness of the cruelty involved in producing kopi luwak.
@jameshoffmanncoffee Kopi Luwak has the reputation of being one of the best and most expensive coffees in the world. Clearly, unique does not always mean outstanding. #coffeetok #kopiluwak #coffeeaddict ♬ original sound – James Hoffmann
Kopi Luwak is the local name for civet cat poo coffee. Since civet cats don’t digest coffee beans and are known to occasionally eat coffee beans that have fallen from coffee plants in the wild, coffee producers in Indonesia feed captive civet cats a limited diet of mostly coffee beans to produce novelty products.
There is a misconception that civet cat poo coffee has a distinct and highly sought-after flavor, but coffee experts have confirmed this simply isn’t the case.
Civet coffee is known to be one of the most highly values types of coffee in the world with prices sitting upwards of USD 500 per pound.
With so much incredible coffee to try in Bali and across Indonesia, tourists can have their caffeine fix and more without knowingly or unknowingly supporting animal abuse and in some cases even wildlife crime.
@tsurutatifany BREAKING- New footage reveals tourists in Bali are being intentionally LIED TO about how Kopi Luwak is sourced. The truth is that civet cats are confined to wire cages so their poop can be harvested to make coffee. Kopi Luwa
The Senior Vice President of PETA, Jason Baker, has spoken to reporters about kopi luwak in Bali.
There had been hopes in the animal welfare sector that this trend had had its day, though it seems tourists are still seeking out kopi luwak, largely on the basis that the whole process has now been normalised despite the abuses against the civets.
While many coffee plantations open to tourists and agrotourism projects in Bali claim to afford their citizens high welfare, the reality is that is very often not the case.
Civets, which are found in declining numbers in the wild in Bali, are captured from the forest. This is either coordinated by killing the mother and taking the kittens or by setting traps or breeding on farms.
Civet cats are largely nocturnal and require a rich and varied diet, including fruits, insects, and small mammals.
@knowledgequiz What’s your opinion on Kopi Luwak coffee? #greenscreen #knowledgequiz #learnontiktok2021 #triviachallenge #coffeetok #kopiluwak ♬ Blade Runner 2049 – Synthwave Goose
The civet cats are mostly kept in tiny cages that are not kept clean. Most do not get any exercise, health stimulation, or enrichment, nor have access to fresh water or the varied diet they require.
Baker told reporters, “Tour guides in Bali often mislead tourists by claiming that kopi luwak is obtained from the faces of wild civets.”
“However the reality is that most of this coffee is the product of keeping these animals in captivity.”
Even those outlets claiming to sell high welfare kopi luwak, or even have a civet in a clean and spacious cage should be met with suspicion.
There simply aren’t enough wild civet cats in Bali, nor does coffee make up as much of their natural wild diet to create as much kopi luwak as is on the market.
As Baker told reporters “it is impossible to generate the qualities needed for export without caging civet cats. Despite global attention and condemnation, the inhumane treatment of these living, feeling being persist in the industry.”
He concluded “tourists be warned: stay away from civet coffee.” Studies and investigations conduced by World Animal Protection have revealed that there are no ethical animal tourism facilities in Bali or Lombok.
The undercover investigation by World Animal Protection resulted in an awareness campaign by the organization called ‘Holidays That Harm.’
The campaign highlighted that of the 26 animal entertainment and animal tourism venues assessed in Bali and Lombok, “no wildlife entertainment venue in Bali met good welfare standards for animals in captivity, and most didn’t even meet the basic needs.”
The investigation assessed the conditions of over 1,300 animals in Bali and Lombok, including elephants, orangutan and dolphins.
World Animal Protection’s finding showed that ten of the venues assessed during the investigation were categorized as wildlife entertainment venues, including Mason Elephant Lodge, Bali Zoo, Bali Safari Marine Park, and Bali Exotic Marine Park, which call failed to meet the animal welfare standards laid out by the organizations consulting biologists, veterinarians, and animal welfare specialists.
