INDONESIA’S top Islamic body announced earlier this month that it may issue a fatwa forbidding followers from drinking the world’s most expensive coffee – extracted from the dung of a civet cat, or kopi luwak.
The kopi luwak produces the most expensive turds on the planet
But we have just learned that Ma’aruf Amin, chairman of the Indonesian Council of Ulama (MUI) has had a change of heart:
After a long discussion among clerics here, we decided that it’s not sinful for Muslims to drink the Luwak coffee.
It was originally thought that the cute little critter that poops out the highly-prized, hugely expensive coffee beans was najis (ritually unclean). Any Muslim coming into contact with najis are themselves contaminated, and thus require purification before performing religious duties like prayers.
But Amin now says that kopi luwak:
Is not haram as long as you wash the beans with water to remove the civet cat’s droppings.
He added:
The beans have to be washed very clean and must be intact, not smashed, to prevent the feces from entering. Muslims should not feel worried about drinking luwak coffee anymore.
Beans eaten by the nocturnal kopi luwak are fermented in their stomachs. Kopi crap is then scooped up and roasted, producing coffee prized for its smooth flavour and bitterless aftertaste. It fetches around £150 a pound online.
Kopi Luwak is produced on several Indonesian islands, spanning from Sumatra in the west to Sulawesi in the east, but it also can be found under different names elsewhere in Southeast Asia. Only 1,000 pounds (450 kilograms) are said to be produced annually worldwide.
There is an amusing piece on kopi luwak coffee here.
Hat tip: BarrieJohn
The Freethinker was founded in 1881 by GW Foote, an outspoken critic of religion. After the publication of 
July 30th, 2010 at 11:12 am
A mullah pronounced of Crap Coffee:
“I gather it’s shat by the Kopi.
That turd is absurd,
It’s the worst thing I’ve heard;
You’d do better to suck on a toffee!”
July 30th, 2010 at 11:50 am
I don’t suppose the mullah’s have declared it ok because they’ve found, after all, that no animals are harmed in its production. (There have been claims that some are caged and force-fed the beans.)
July 30th, 2010 at 12:09 pm
There was a mad mullah at the Kaaba
Who said Coffee is tasty from Java
But if you make a brew
From a Civet Cat’s poo
Unclean you will be before Allah
July 30th, 2010 at 1:35 pm
Very old Indonesian saying:
“There’s an awful lot of coffee in cat poo”.
July 30th, 2010 at 3:47 pm
Maybe I missed an update somewhere, but isn’t the Civet Cat the one responsible for spreading SARS? Is this SARS coffee?
July 30th, 2010 at 4:12 pm
“Opinion is divided on the matter” again, Janstince. The Chinese say it is, but everyone else says that it isn’t!
http://news.nationalgeographic....._SARS.html
Neskopi!!
July 30th, 2010 at 5:07 pm
What I want to know is…
How desperate for a cuppa was the first person to try the erm… cat-filtered beans in the first place?
July 30th, 2010 at 5:20 pm
I am fascinated that there are people who will sit down and intensly debate about rules that have no real world consequences whatsoever. Over at Pharyngula there is a clip from a Catholic advice website on the subject of whether or not you can eat alligator on a Friday by pretending that it is a fish.
Non of it matters anyway because the date for the rapture has been set for spring next year according to these folks. http://www.wecanknow.com/
July 30th, 2010 at 5:34 pm
SARS – you can see why they decided to label it not only Acute but also Severe!
_____
July 30th, 2010 at 8:20 pm
Fermented?
Don’t fermented things usually contain certain chemicals that muslims are a little unhappy about?
July 30th, 2010 at 8:33 pm
Why should an Indonesian civet cat be ritually unclean?
I can’t imagine Mohammerhead encountering many during his lifetime.
I don’t fancy the coffe either. It’s production reminds me of a closing remark from an episode of Blackadder IV set in the WWI trenches. They were using mud for coffee, dandruff as sugar and saliva for milk. Somehow they were “milking” a cat to obtain custard:
http://www.moviesoundclips.net.....ustard.wav
July 30th, 2010 at 9:08 pm
@Broadsword:
Do you want me to sprinkle some chocolate on it …?
Only to be beaten by Baldric’s Rat Au Vin.
July 30th, 2010 at 9:42 pm
A pedant writes:
Civets aren’t cats they are Viverrids, It’s important to get these matters right when you are considering a fatwah, wouldn’t want the Imams to look foolish.
July 31st, 2010 at 6:05 am
Our cat won’t touch coffee or tea, for that matter. We did try a tuna infusion, but that didn’t work either.
July 31st, 2010 at 4:08 pm
@Daz
Seeing this will put you off meat for a while:
http://ratbeef.com/
July 31st, 2010 at 9:01 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IISZgCEaoE
August 28th, 2010 at 1:35 pm
‘It’s OK for Muslims to drink crap coffee’.
I thought the local immams must have accepted sponsorship from Starb..(whoops! must remember the UK libel laws).