Kampot Bird Pepper PGI

Take a close look at the photo of the peppercorns: the birds have done their job well, producing some magnificent white peppercorns. Bird Pepper is in fact the exclusive work of a fruit-eating bird, the goiavier bulbul (Pycnonotus goiavier). At the peak of the harvest, when the peppercorns are ripening and turning from green to red, the birds approach the pepper plantations. Like us, birds are particularly fond of the sweet, fragrant flavour of the fresh, ripe, juicy red peppercorns. They peck at the largest seeds on the bunch, digest them and discard the pits in their droppings. The gastric juices in their digestive system destroy the pepper’s pericarp, transforming the flavour of the white peppercorns for the better.

All that remains is to collect these extremely rare peppercorns from around the plantation. This painstaking work is carried out by the women when they weed by hand, enabling them to harvest a few dozen peppercorns a day. The seeds are then washed and dried in the sun.

La Plantation collects just a few kilos of Poivre des Oiseaux each year. The authenticity of La Plantation’s Poivre des Oiseaux is certified by the KPPA (Kampot Pepper Promotion Association).

As early as the end of the 19th century, Auguste Pavie, who stayed in Kampot from 1876 to 1879 as a telegraph agent, described the madness of the pepper growers who collected the Bird Pepper corns reputed to have aphrodisiac properties, and sold them in the Chinese pharmacies of Kampot.

Kampot bird pepper, produced on our farm in Kampot, is an exceptional, highly aromatic pepper that goes well with white meats, fish and eggs in all forms (hard-boiled, casserole, fried or scrambled). Start with small quantities to appreciate its subtle aroma and delicate spiciness!

Like all exceptional peppers, Birds Pepper must be stored well. Once the packet has been opened, we recommend that you store it in a cool, dry place, away from light and moisture, so that it retains all its flavour and aroma.