Taste at every drop (pings) of Coffee! A case for GI protection

On November 20, 2009 in General

Lotrisone For Sale Propecia Generic Buy Inderal Online Amoxil Without Prescription Prevacid No Prescription Zyban For Sale Clarinex Generic Buy Zyban Online Lipitor Without Prescription Neurontin No Prescription

Many of us begin our day with a relishing hot cup of coffee and a newspaper. I remember months ago sipping the beverage and browsing across the pages. An article caught my attention, it was titled kopi luwak. Animal coffee. Intrigued, I read further. It is an Indonesian coffee.’Kopi Luwak’ is a rare, distinct and unique coffee in the world which is produced by involving native animal behavior. Human hands don’t harvest the bean that makes this rare brew, but “luwak”(Paradoxorus hermaproditus) – a civet cat, does it. “Luwak” is native at South East Asia region particularly in Sumatra and Java islands. They move at night, creep along the limbs of coffee bush, sniffing out of sweet red coffee cherries and selecting only the tastiest. After chewing off the fruity exterior, they swallow the hard innards. In the animals’ stomachs, enzymes in the gastric juices massage the beans. Since the animal belongs to carnivore, it only need the coffee mucilage mainly to obtain sugar, fiber and vitamins. Humans then collect and process the rest of the odor free droppings to have green coffee for roasting. The result is a delicacy beverage. It’s called “KOPI LUWAK”! the most expensive coffee in the world. Just smell this, a kilo of this “naturally processed” coffee beans may command anywhere between US $300 to $600. I felt weird. I could not drink anymore of my coffee for the obvious thought that passed my mind.

And now I am even more intrigued to know that the Indonesian Government is pushing for a protection of this animal coffee as a Geographical Indication under its Law on Geographical Indication 15/2001 as the coffee is vulnerable to counterfeiting and product imitation. (www.wipo.int/edocs/mdocs/…/wipo_geo_sof_09_www_124275.pdf). The geographical parameters that contribute to the uniqueness of this coffee are highland dry climatic conditions, volcanic soils and near to the equator and the animal processing and the shaded integrated farming. This coffee is known for very unique and excellent aroma and flavor.
Here is an extra sugar for this coffee. T.S. Ganesh at Biligiri Ranga Hills in Karnataka is the only planter in India promoting this variety of brew and manages to scoop up about 3 kilos of these droppings(http://www.hindu.com/mag/2006/04/16/stories/2006041600270400.htm).

A report by Wildlife Institute of India on “Mustelids, Viverrids and Herpestids of India: Species Profile and Conservation Status- S A Hussain ,1999” maps the habitat of Civet cats to entire India from east of Gujarat to Jammu and Kashmir, whole of the peninsula down south up to SriLanka (http://oldwww.wii.gov.in/envis/envisdec99/commonpalmcivet.htm). Considering the above fact that India is home to palm civet cats and coffee planters at least in the region of Karnataka are practicing this particular form of coffee production, it’s has the potential of becoming a good business and may be once there is large scale production (or even now), India can bat for GI too!

By Shalini R, Team Xellect

Comments (0)