As reported by:

Summary

Black Ivory Coffee is naturally refined by rescued Thai elephants. It is the world's rarest (300 kg available for 2013) and most uniquely processed coffee. According to media reports it is also the most expensive. It has taken the founder, Blake Dinkin, 10 years and his life savings to develop this product.

What Makes Black Ivory Coffee So Unique?

Black Ivory Coffee starts with the highest quality 100% Thai Arabica beans which are then ingested and naturally refined by rescued Thai elephants.  This process removes the bitterness from coffee and infuses the fruit of the cherry into the bean. The result is a cup of coffee that is floral, chocolate in aroma with a flavour that can be described as a mix of chocolate, ripe red cherries and a hint of grass with no bitterness or burnt taste.

Problem:

With such an unusual story comes a lot of press. Examples include: CBS News, ABC Nightline, Huffington Post, USA Today,  CNN Travel The Bangkok Post, The Wall Street Journal  and Luxury Insider.

While publicity is great for sales it has also resulted in others stealing the brand and presenting it as their own. We have also received request to produce our coffee for others because they have coffee and elephants but they will not disclose the conditions in which the elephants are kept, if there is a vet present, what are the elephants present state of health, what is the quality of the coffee, how much coffee will the elephants eat, will the feeding take place in a transparent manner, and whether the entire process is open for anyone to see? This raises concerns about ethical production.

We believe there are many people who care about what they eat and how it is made. We also feel that many people (artists, scientists, musicians etc.) believe in free enterprise but they also want to protect what they have spent so much time, money and effort in creating. This is why we are asking for your help. 

Solution:

In order to prevent Black Ivory Coffee products from being pirated we require US$15,000 to obtain intellectual property protection in Asia, Middle East, North America and Europe. We want to ensure that the name and process helps elephants and assures the quality and the authenticity of Black Ivory Coffee. In Thailand, it costs approximately US$1100 to obtain the necessary legal protection. With an additional $15000, we can obtain legal protection in roughly 14 more countries. We are doing an all or nothing approach so if we don't make the target you do not have to pay.

Ethical Issue

Dealing with piracy is not a sexy issue. However, we do not want the image of Black Ivory Coffee eroded like Civet Coffee (Kopi Luwak). Originally, Civet Coffee was collected in the wild but now civets in many countries are being caged and force-fed coffee beans in order to commercialize production. This is exactly what we want to avoid and the only way to prevent this is through legal protection. 

Risks and challenges 

* Funding goal on Indiegogo is not achieved

We will not be able to afford legal protection and competitors will most likely produce a product that has not actually passed through an elephant, has been produced unethically, or where the desire to make a social impact is not a priority. The result is an inferior product that cheats you the consumer as well as in the worst case scenario, the welfare of the elephant.

* Competitor may try to sell another coffee produced by elephants

We cannot stop competition but it has taken 10 years to produce a great cup of coffee. Should someone think that production entails simply feeding good coffee to an elephant, she/he will discover that the coffee is not drinkable.

* Competitors may try to sell coffee that has not actually been processed by an elephant

Coffee that has not been processed by an elephant using my method is noticeably more bitter and will not have the same notes as Black Ivory Coffee. This is recognizable even for the average coffee drinker.

* Someone will use a different animal

Other choices are not viable for a multiple reasons.  They are: not mono gastric (one stomach), too dangerous to work closely to them or they live in areas that are inaccessible. Elephants are the only viable option.

The Social and Economic Impact

Black Ivory Coffee Company Ltd is a start-up coffee company that combines a great cup of coffee, beautiful presentation and a desire to make a positive social impact. We create this impact through the following ways:

1) We produce at and give back 8% of our sales to the Golden Triangle Asian Elephant Foundation in Chiang Saen, Thailand (www.helpingelephants.org). To our knowledge this is the only Thai registered elephant charity that is also a sanctuary. The majority of the 26 elephants have been rescued off the street. Our contribution supports 1-2 full time elephant veterinarians, medicine to treat sick elephants and the construction of a laboratory to treat sick elephants

2) We provide income generation for the wives of the Mahouts (elephant owners). This money helps pay for necessities such as children's clothing, food, household materials, emergency funds for health care and home improvements.

3) We support the local economy by purchasing our coffee cherries from subsistence coffee growers, many of whom were former opium producers.

Rewards

We have created numerous rewards that you will not find anywhere else. Starting with our coffee, which we otherwise only sell to five star hotels, we will make an exception for this campaign because we really want to ensure the ethical production of Black Ivory Coffee.

Even if you can't afford to contribute we hope you will help us get our message out. Thank you for your support!

Blake as well as the Mahouts, the women who pick our coffee and the elephants.