Meet the Asian palm civet, the little animal involved in one of the world’s most unusual coffee-making processes.​ ​ It eats ripe coffee cherries, and as the beans pass through its digestive system, they undergo natural fermentation.​​ Once excreted, the beans are collected, washed, dried and roasted to make Kopi Luwak, a rare (and very expensive) specialty coffee. #AsianPalmCivet #CivetCoffee #DiscoveryChannelSoutheastAsia #KopiLuwak #Coffee #SoutheastAsia | Discovery Channel Southeast Asia

The Asian palm civet (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus) is a viverrid native to South and Southeast Asia. Since 2008, it is IUCN Red Listed as Least Concern as it accommodates to a broad range of habitats. Read more: https://www.wildlifealliance.org/asian-palm-civet/ It is widely distributed with large populations that in 2008 were thought unlikely to be declining. In Indonesia, it is threatened by poaching and illegal wildlife trade; buyers use it for the increasing production of kopi luwak, a form o