Overview
- Researchers at the Central University of Kerala compared unroasted beans from 68 wild civet scat samples in India’s Kodagu district with plant-picked Robusta beans.
- Civet-processed beans showed significantly higher total fat and elevated caprylic- and capric-acid methyl esters, compounds associated with dairy-like flavor notes.
- The team links the shifts to gut-driven fermentation and enzymes in civets, aligning with earlier microbiome work implicating Gluconobacter.
- The study, published October 23 in Scientific Reports, found no increases in protein or caffeine in civet beans and calls for roasting-stage and sensory evaluations.
- The findings are spurring efforts to recreate the chemistry without animals and to authenticate genuine beans, as concerns over caged civets and potential zoonotic risk continue.