UNAIR NEWS – As part of their environmental sustainability initiatives, students from Universitas Airlangga’s 5th Learning with Community Program (BBK) have introduced an innovative tea derived from Bontugu coffee leaves. On January 15, 2025, they conducted a field visit and study at the Bontugu Coffee plantation and production facility, located on the slopes of Mount Welirang in Ketapanrame Village, Trawas.
The visit began with the planting of Yellow Caturra coffee seedlings, a premium variety of Arabica coffee grown at the plantation. Under the guidance of Wahyu Sanyoto, Deputy Chairperson of the Bontugu Coffee Farmers’ Association, the students engaged in hands-on learning, practicing agronomically sound techniques for planting coffee seedlings.
After planting, the students also explored the maintenance of mature coffee trees and post-harvest processes. Daily care routines for coffee plants include pruning water shoots that disrupt productive branches and clearing weeds that hinder growth.
“A well-maintained coffee tree is distinguished by glossy leaves and neatly arranged productive branches, which optimize its yield. Each tree can produce between 5 and 20 kilograms of coffee cherries,” Sanyoto explained.
While coffee is the primary crop, Bontugu farmers are committed to utilizing every part of the coffee plant to reduce waste and increase its value. Coffee husks produced during processing are repurposed into cascara tea, a beverage rich in antioxidants, or processed into flour for baking. Coffee wood and roots are used as sustainable firewood, while coffee beans are refined into premium products such as coffee-scented perfumes and natural body scrubs.
Despite these efforts, coffee leaves—a component with significant economic potential—have remained largely underexplored. To address this, UNAIR students in Ketapanrame Village developed a new product: tea made from coffee leaves.
Known locally as Kawa Daun or Kopi Kawa, coffee leaf tea contains compounds with anti-carcinogenic properties. These include alkaloids, caffeine, saponins, flavonoids, and polyphenols. Flavonoids, a subgroup of polyphenols, are particularly valued for their antioxidant properties, their ability to inhibit enzymatic oxidation and hydrolysis, and their anti-inflammatory effects.
Utilizing advanced processing technology available at the Bontugu Coffee production facility, the students crafted kawa daun tea through a drying process. This step removes saponins, which can impart bitterness and cause stable foam formation in water solutions.
Author: BBK Ketapanrame Team
