If you love coffee, this article is for you. Heck, even if you don’t love coffee, this information may interest you.
How much did you pay for your last cup of coffee? How much are you willing to pay for a good cup of coffee? A great cup of coffee? An extraordinary cup of coffee? How much would you pay for coffee with beans that were fermented in elephant poop?
Yes, you read that correctly. And the coffee from elephant poop is roughly $150 for two-servings of the brew, or $1,500 for a pound of beans. That is, if you can find the coffee as it has a very limited supply; production is only about 500 pounds per year.
How does one get such coffee? It starts with captive Asian elephants that consume a mix of coffee and fruit. Their stomachs ferment the mixture, which eliminates its bitterness.
This isn’t the only type of coffee made from animal poop. There is also bird-poop coffee as well as monkey-chewed coffee beans. Plus, a ‘naturally refined’ coffee from the poop of a type of cat called civets. (It’s important to note that some of these coffees are produced from animals that are not well cared-for in captivity.)
Here is a list of a few of the most expensive coffees in the world:
- Black Ivory – $1,500 per pound (fermented by elephants)
- Ospina Gran Café – $1,400 per pound
- Kopi Luwak – $600 per pound (fermented by civets)
- El Injerto Peaberry – $500 per pound
- Esmeralda Geisha – $350 per pound
Shall we go get a cup of Joe?
Group Activities and Discussion Questions:
- Poll students: How much do they usually pay for a cup of coffee? Now, how much would they pay for great coffee, and for unique coffee?
- This is a great topic for pricing. Discuss the six steps for pricing (determining objectives, estimating demand, determining cost/profit relationships, select price level, set list price, and make adjustments).
- Discuss the various pricing models in class: demand-oriented, cost-oriented, profit-oriented, and competition-oriented.
- For these products, divide students into groups and have each group work on any/all of the six steps.
- Show the Black Ivory coffee site: https://blackivorycoffee.com/
- Ospina Gran Café: https://www.ospinacoffee.com/products/index.html
- Kopi Luwak: https://www.kayakopi.com/
- Divide students into teams.
- Have each team select a unique coffee and define the target market.
- Teams should prepare a marketing plan for product and market.
- What will they emphasize?
Source: Bradley, M. (6 November 2023). Not your average cup of Joe: The 11 most expensive coffees. Luxe.digital; Maron, D. (12 December 2023). $1,500 for ‘naturally refined’ coffee? Here’s what that phrase really means. National Geographic.
