Co-op drops Thai coconut milk over use of monkey slave labour
THE Co-op will no longer sell coconut milk sourced from Thailand after an animal rights group claimed monkey labour was used on farms in the country.
Instead, the grocer will stock its own brand of the product, which it says is sourced from Sri Lanka where the animals are not used.
Campaigning charity People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) has asked the retailer to extend the policy to include all Thai coconut milk products and urges shoppers to avoid buying such items if marked “Product of Thailand”.
A Peta investigation into Thailand’s coconut industry uncovered horrifying practices. One trainer was caught on camera dangling a screaming monkey by the neck and striking it.
Another monkey used for breeding was kept chained alone in the sun, without access to water, while other young monkeys were locked in cramped cages.
Coconut pickers claimed endangered pig-tailed macaques used in the trade are taken from their families in the wild and sometimes break bones falling from or being yanked down from trees. Dr Carys Bennett, from Peta, said: “Co-op is living up to its cooperative namesake by taking this compassionate step to avoid cruelly obtained coconut milk.
“We urge the Thai government to put an end to the exploitative practice of forcing captive monkeys to harvest coconuts.”
Thai officials last year rejected Peta’s claims of widespread abuse, saying the traditional practice of using monkeys is almost nonexistent within the industry, which instead depends on human labour and machinery.
In 2021, Thailand exported some 236,323 tons of coconut milk, worth £279,000, according to the Department of Agriculture.